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Revealed
wealth problem

Man Utd bench against City cost staggering £228m… not including £505,000-a-week flop Sanchez

Unused subs Nemanja Matic and Juan Mata were worth £77m alone

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OLE GUNNAR SOLSKJAER benched a staggering £228MILLION worth of Red Devils players in Wednesday's Manchester derby defeat.

United's subs were more expensive than their City counterparts - and that figure didn't even include the whopping £505,000-a-week salary of Alexis Sanchez.

 Man Utd's bench was more expensive than City's in the Manchester derby
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Man Utd's bench was more expensive than City's in the Manchester derby
 Man Utd's £75m man Romelu Lukaku was the most expensive player to sit on the bench in the Manchester derby
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Man Utd's £75m man Romelu Lukaku was the most expensive player to sit on the bench in the Manchester derbyCredit: PA:Press Association

Disappointed Solskjaer made five changes to the United side that were drubbed 4-0 at Everton last Sunday.

The Norwegian wanted to shake things up at Old Trafford for the derby clash, axing struggling big-money signings from the starting line-up.

As a result, United's bench was worth £228m on Wednesday, it has been revealed.

That's £44.2m more than City's subs, with Riyad Mahrez their most expensive signing at £60m.

Romelu Lukaku and Anthony Martial, who came on to the pitch in the second half, cost Red Devils chiefs some £132m.

Meanwhile, £40m star Nemanja Matic and £37m-rated Juan Mata were unused subs in the derby loss.

HITTING THE JACKPOT

The staggering sum does not include Red Devils flop Sanchez, who technically joined the club for free in a swap deal with Arsenal that saw Henrikh Mkhitaryan move to London in 2018.

But the Chilean earns a whopping £505,000-a-week, despite rarely contributing to the team.

Sanchez was later revealed to have touched the ball once during his 12-minute cameo on Wednesday.

And he pocketed some £75,000 for that effort nevertheless thanks to an appearance fee clause in his deal with United.

Solskjaer hoped that deploying football-hungry players such as Matteo Darmian or Andreas Pereira against City would spark life into his side.

But United lost 2-0, seriously denting their pursuit of Champions League football next season.

Club executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward has reportedly held crisis talks with the Red Devils coach following the loss.

The Old Trafford outfit have lost seven out of their nine last games - the team's worst run of form in 57 years.

United are bracing themselves for a massive squad overhaul this summer, with Solskjaer reiterating in recent weeks new blood is needed if he is to make his side competitive again.

But should the club run out of funds, there evidently is some unused capital sitting right on their bench, ready to be reinvested.

 Alexis Sanchez, who pockets £505,000 at Old Trafford every week, came on the pitch in the second half and touched the ball just once
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Alexis Sanchez, who pockets £505,000 at Old Trafford every week, came on the pitch in the second half and touched the ball just onceCredit: Reuters
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