Transfer Tales: How Hughes returned to United

After an initial spell with the club that saw him Catalonia-bound to represent Barcelona, Hughes returned to the Reds, when Alex Ferguson saw it as a gift for the supporters who had adored him following his rise up through the ranks.

His second stint at the club saw him break new ground as he helped build a footballing dynasty at Old Trafford. 

Mark’s football journey soon ventured into management following his retirement, and he is still doing it, at Carlisle United, but his contribution to the English game as a player will fondly be remembered by Reds far and wide. 

STORY OF THE TRANSFER 

After leaving school in 1980, Hughes left Wrexham and headed to Manchester where he spent six years with the Reds in his first stint with us. In 1986, FC Barcelona came knocking, and for a hefty price tag of £2 million, he linked up with fellow Brit Gary Lineker the Nou Camp. 

While his strike partner endeared himself to the Spaniards, Sparky didn’t quite emulate Lineker in that sense and, after just one season with the demanding La Liga giants, he found himself on loan at German side Bayern Munich. 

In 1998, with United now under the watchful eye of Alex Ferguson, Hughes returned to M16 for a then-club-record fee of £1.8 million. In his first season back, he was the club’s joint-top scorer with 16 goals and though we finished a disappointing 11th in the table, Mark became the first Red to be voted PFA’s Player of the Year. 

He would go on to spend a further six years with us, developing a knack for coming up clutch in cup finals and winning two league titles with us, before his eventual move away to Chelsea. His time with the Reds was pivotal in laying the groundwork for the era of dominance under Sir Alex in the years that followed.  

In his episode of the United Podcast, Hughes revealed his great satisfaction in wearing the no.10 shirt and his connection with the club having spent the best part of his senior career at Old Trafford.  

“I had immense pride for playing for Manchester United and wearing the number 10 red shirt,” he said. “It was really special to me.

“I had a real affinity with the club. I joined when I was 14 and bar a couple of years when I left, I was here until I was 31.”

He also talked of his love for the Old Trafford faithful, whom he felt he represented on the pitch with his trademark aggression and commitment.

“Some players like to block the crowd out and just play within the white line, whereas I went over the lines as well to get a sense of how the crowd was. I think the United fans understood that’s what I was doing - I was trying to amplify what their feelings were on the pitch.

“I always had a great relationship with the United fans in that regard; they understood that when I played for United I’d always play my best.” 

WHAT THEY SAID 

Sir Alex Ferguson: “Mark was a determined player – he was a Rottweiler and a warrior on that pitch – and yet, off the pitch, you couldn’t get a quieter guy. He had two personalities. He has aggression and determination. I think I had that too and I think that it’s a great quality.

"I saw the transfer as repaying the fantastic loyalty of our supporters by restoring one of their heroes to them."