Man Utd attempted crazy swap deal that would have changed Premier League history

Manchester United once suggested a swap deal that could have completely changed the way the club looks now.

As undoubtedly one of the biggest football clubs in the world, United are able to attract some of the best and most exciting talents in the sport.

The likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Wayne Rooney and Roy Keane have all represented the Red Devils in recent years, showing just how impressive the club's pull truly is.

However, there are also plenty of players that have been linked with Old Trafford but never made the move, including legends of the sport such as Ronaldo Nazario and Zinedine Zidane.

More recently, there is one proposed swap deal that stands out as one that could have changed the club's current situation massively had it gone through.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney are two of the best to ever play for Manchester United. (Image: Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)

Of course, alongside boasting an impressive roster of players that are viewed as some of the very best, there are also plenty of players that failed to live up to the hype at United.

Just one of those players is Romelu Lukaku who scored 42 goals in 96 appearances after joining from Everton in a deal reported to be worth £75million plus £15m in add-ons.

Eventually, Lukaku left the club in the summer of 2019 to join Inter Milan for a club record fee of €80m (£74m), but he could have left earlier in a swap deal with Juventus for Paulo Dybala.

According to a report from Sky Sports back in 2020, Juventus also wanted to sign Lukaku in the summer of 2019, offering Dybala as part of the deal.

It is claimed that United were open to the deal, but it ultimately fell through primarily because Dybala didn't want to leave Turin that summer.

Instead, Lukaku joined Serie A rivals Milan, while United turned their attention to Bruno Fernandes, who joined the club just six months later.

Bruno Fernandes may not have joined Manchester United had the Lukaku and Dybala swap deal happened. (Image: Matt McNulty/Getty Images)

Although it's impossible to say how well Dybala would have performed if he had joined United, it's hard to imagine his impact would have been anything like that of Fernandes.

The Portuguese international, who was appointed United captain in July 2023, is undoubtedly the best player in the current squad and has 184 goals or assists across 290 appearances for the club.

Since joining the club in January 2020 for an initial €55m (£47m), Fernandes has won Player of the Season at United four times, showing how important he has been since his arrival.