But now the quartet of captures from the summer of 2007 is a trio and the remaining threesome are facing a crunch campaign.
Two years ago, United manager Fergie built from a position of strength as the newly-crowned 2007 Premier League champions having dethroned back-to-back winners Chelsea.
The Reds invested in Owen Hargreaves, Carlos Tevez, Nani and Anderson.
It was a statement of intent from Old Trafford that having fought back against Roman Abramovich's financial power they were prepared to spend on the right players to keep United back at the forefront in the English game.
Market
It was one of Fergie's busiest close seasons in the market. It was a whirlwind eight days of activity with United stealing a march on everyone else in the transfer market by getting their business done early for a change.
From May 30 to June 6 that year, three new arrivals in Hargreaves, Nani and Anderson had been announced.
The Glazers backed the manager with the cash to beef up his title-winning squad.
They sanctioned the £18m acquisition of England midfield Hargreaves from Bayern Munich after a year-long and sometimes bitter pursuit.
A similar amount was wired to Sporting Lisbon's bank to capture the raw pace and wing talent of 20-year-old Nani.
And another fee of around £18m went to Porto for 19-year-old Brazilian midfielder Anderson.
Only the complicated Tevez deal stretched throughout the summer months before he was signed on the eve of the season.
A two-year loan deal costing the Reds £6m and an agreed further £26m to make the deal permanent this summer was negotiated.
It was a effectively a £60m outlay with the later cash taking the 2007 close season purchases up to over £80m.
But with a double-winning campaign topped off in Moscow when all four of the newcomers scored in the dramatic penalty shoot-out against Chelsea, nobody could argue it wasn't money well spent.
All four were inked onto Fergie's long transfer credit column.
Impact
Hargreaves proved to be a versatile, strong midfielder with boundless energy. The knee tendonitis, however, dogged some of his debut Old Trafford season but he was still an instant hit.
The Canadian-born player's impact in the Champions League final was a classic show of his discipline and power.
Anderson had impressed United's staff in a pre-season game in the Amsterdam tournament in 2006.
He was young but had a curious mix of Brazilian flair and English determination. Winters in the Premier League weren't going to upset this boy from Brazil.
Impressive head-to-head clashes with Arsenal's Cesc Fabregas and Liverpool's Steven Gerrard won him Reds fans hearts.
Nani's spectacular long-range strikes and equally flamboyant goal celebrations convinced the United support that a potential second Cristiano Ronaldo had been `stolen' from Sporting Lisbon's famous Academy.
Tevez, too, was an instant hit. Heart-on-his-sleeve endeavour, no blade of grass untouched by his boots and 14 goals in his first term had United fans slavering at the thought of a permanent deal.
But how things have changed. Tevez, of course, has turned his back on an Old Trafford future despite the love affair with the fans.
The other three are all facing huge personal challenges.
Hargreaves, who played just three times last season, has got to prove the two knee operations he had to endure in America last winter have been successful enough to tackle the highest level again.
Surgery
The 27-year-old is convinced the surgery has worked and his renowned specialist Dr Richard Steadman is equally confident.
However, it will be a nervous time waiting to see if the ravages of a marathon season with United take its toll.
Anderson and Nani have both been blighted by the so-called second season syndrome after impressing in their debut campaigns.
Portuguese winger Nani has sadly progressed little. Having witnessed the gradual development of Ronaldo after he arrived from Lisbon in 2003 United fans anticipated a similar learning curve from Nani.
But his United career graph has plateaued. Only eight appearances after January last term was an indication of how stuck in a rut he had become. At 22 he now has some catching up to do.
Anderson, too, was unable to match his fine debut campaign.
Fergie backed him to come good as the vital April/May period kicked in and the South American won the vote over Paul Scholes in all the later key European Cup matches. Disappointingly, after being handed a further nod of approval in Rome, Anderson was unable to make any impact on Barcelona's midfield of Xavi and Iniesta in the Champions League final.
He was substituted at half-time in the Stadio Olimpico having endured a torrid 45 minutes in the engine room.
A personal season that had only briefly touched the heights of his first Old Trafford campaign ended on a major low.
A year ago, Hargreaves, Anderson and Nani left for their break with Premier League title and Champions League winning medals from their first season at Old Trafford. Life was good.
The surviving trio of the new Class of `07 will be reflecting on what a difference a year makes as they enjoy their last days of the holiday before pre-season begins next month.
What do you think will be United's starting line up for the first Premier League game next season? Have your say.
Tweet
Showing comments 1 to 25 and replies | View All
keithmat (23/06/2009 at 13:50)
Gilly, Belgium (23/06/2009 at 14:20)
Alias Smith, over the moon (23/06/2009 at 14:22)
Nevertheless, I think the outcome of Hargreave's ops will determine whether SAF will look for a midfielder this summer. Certainly, having a (fully-fit) player of that ilk in the squad would be a welcome addition to our options.
As for the two youngsters, it's very premature to write either of them off. Particularly Anderson, who is rumoured to have been carrying some sort of injury and have needed an op. Ronaldo's sale creates an opportunity for Nani to prove himself. Important seasons for them both, I agree, but they have the necessary talent.
danny, WILMSLOW (23/06/2009 at 14:26)
boyfromburrenway, exile czech republic (23/06/2009 at 14:30)
the bigger problem is Anderson , how has such a talent..albeit young raw kid...not progressed the way everyoen expected? nani too...is it just their age..very excusable or is it the training, or is it that fergie doesnt knwo where to play ANderson...i think that the problem to be honest... Nani i dont think will come good now, i dont saw hes rubbish as soem do, i just think wrong player wrong club..id swap him today for velosso, as fergie seems intent on bringing valencia in, and wellbeck meantime can be useful on the right wing.
all in al no matter who coems in getting the ebst from anderson, carrick, wellbeck, fletcher and of course rooney +berba should be the coaching staffs first order of business, once they do that we could see a real upswing in the way the team pefroms without goig silly on spending money.
imagine the anderson, berba +rooney we all want to see doing it week in week out ? with macheda and wellbeck and tosic improving .....thats management ..any mug can throw 80 mill around for short term gain...skill is to look at what you have a la martin oneill, and to a lesser degree harry rednapp and make a tangible improvement.
Alias Smith, over the moon (23/06/2009 at 14:36)
Jamaldo Jamatov (23/06/2009 at 14:46)
Anderson is being wasted, he needs to be in a more advanced position.
Nani also needs a run of games, make or break season for him and it will be interesting to see how he reacts.
Duncan, London (23/06/2009 at 14:48)
johnnygerman, WSU (23/06/2009 at 14:50)
Anderson? I think he'll come good if he gets he chance to play on the left side with a defensive midfielder behind him. He can run at players.
Nani? He could come goo but not if SAF keeps playing him on the left. And as it looks like Valencia's coming, I think he'll struggle.
I'll say it again - van der Vaart and Diarra from Madrid - see if we can get them for the price of this year's Ronaldo instalment.
lawman (23/06/2009 at 14:58)
Are you completelely stupid? Ferguson makes bad buys, of course he does, so does everyone else. He's won 25 major trophies because he makes fewer bad buys than the rest. Easier to list the successes? try Ince, Bruce pallister, Keane, kanchelskis, mcClair, Cantona, schmeical, irwin, parker,van nistlerooy, heinze, sheringham, hughes,yorke, cole, solsjaer ronaldo rooney,vidic, evra, ferdinand, van der for a start, do you want more? Its a lot longer than the list of pups any manager would sign in a 23 year career at the top. Try adding up the clowns that the likes of benitez has signed in 5 years!
edinburgh red, edinburgh (23/06/2009 at 14:59)
Put it this way if all 3 went on sale today we would be lucky to bring in 35million for them.
Barry Lee, USA (23/06/2009 at 15:13)
If we buy Benzema or Eto'o then Fergie will be tempted to pair them with Berbatov and then Rooney will end up on the left again.
jerzy (23/06/2009 at 15:23)
Anderson needs to be given a specific and consistent role and he'll be a great contributor. These young players can't be forever 'shunted' about and be expected to develop properly.
Hargreaves, yes, just unlucky and we may not see him again. He, because of his experience and maturity could play a number of different roles. Tevez, we got the best of it £10m (or so)helping us to win a clutch of honours, and now gone probably because he just did'nt fit anymore.
So I'm not at all concerned about the business we did at that time !
Steve in Brussels (23/06/2009 at 15:42)
Django, Hampshire (23/06/2009 at 15:44)
The Queiroz legacy has been Ronaldo, Nani, Anderson, Manucho, Possebon and the Da Silvas. With Dodo, and maybe Costa, on the way and with 2 full time scouts now operating in Brazil, I guess we can expect the trend to continue.
The only unarguable success of this policy so far has been Ronaldo of course. All the other Portuguese/Brazilians have a lot to prove and we can still remember the awful Kleberson ( who SAF described as a "great" player I remember ). There is obvious value and talent in the two countries but I hope we dont get too fixated on the idea that flooding the team with Brazilians is the path to future success. It is as easy to get it wrong with them as with any other nationality, as experience shows.
Gary Breen (23/06/2009 at 15:47)
Oh and the two youngsters will be fine. Anderson is very young still, while Nani needs a steady run of games. Why not loan him out for a year and then see what happens?
Frank Old Trafford (23/06/2009 at 16:02)
They may not become balon de'ors but they will become top prem players and possibly amongst the world's best, especially Anderson. OH was always going to get injured again, strange that he doesn't get the stick that Saha got. And the Tevez saga was always going to end in tears with the strange, tiresome and calamitous negotiations to get him and the arrival of Berba.
So 2 are a problem of the club's own doing and the other 2 are just victims of bored and impatient hacks and fans.
What is missing is a leader in the middle of the park, TBH OH was probably pencilled in for that role but since we can't count on him we need to get someone to fill that role
bernie , manchester (23/06/2009 at 16:07)
funnythat, manchester (23/06/2009 at 16:17)
A Manc and blue (23/06/2009 at 16:36)
Ex-Kippax Ferryman, Manchester (23/06/2009 at 16:38)
and you are still not satisfied? Yes SAF has bought a few players that didnt come up to expectations,but even Veron ,one you mention won a championship medal.It seems that because 2 top players have left ,and yes will be missed in some respect,but others will come in ,and one name I know United will sign will astound ,and at the same time satisfy the fans.Watch this space.Anderson will come good believe me .
Nani has now the opportunity to show his undoubted talent.As far Hargreaves ,yes a ? will hang around ,but again it will be resolved one way or another.Hargreaves contributed to the Reds when they won the Premiership ,and European Championship in 2007-2008,so hardly a failure.
There is young talent also blossoming at United,Rafael ,Fabio,Welbeck ,Macheda,Evans.
The overreaction by some supporters is seeing city pour endless cash on players like Kompany ,De Jong ,Jo,Robinho,Bojinov ,Barry ,Bellamy,Santa Cruz,probably Tevez etcetc .So what thats their good fortune ,but it doesnt mean a thing until the Silverware is won .It is a new dawn for United now,no more jibes of ladyboy from the berties re.Ronaldo.No more disrespectful remarks aimed at Tevez
from the blues ,(you know what I mean).
Keithmat keep the faith you will should be pleased to look back at the United honours list,and as they say a bird in the hand ,re.trophies United have the history ,some clubs havent and probably never will.They say empty vessels make most sound well thats been proved by the inundations on Uniteds site by city fans.It could be Thaksin Shinawatra part 2.
Lee , Heywood, Heywood (23/06/2009 at 16:38)
citytalk, Hyde (23/06/2009 at 16:41)
Levenshulme-Blue (23/06/2009 at 16:45)
Still, a heart attack is one thing but there's no cure for bitterness and jealousy, is there? They are emotions that you'd level at us Blues, of course, but who's the most bitter, these days, huh?
Ave It! (23/06/2009 at 16:49)
My on my how times are changing.