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Daily Mirror
Daily Mirror
Sport
Jacob Leeks

11 players who moved directly from Man Utd to Everton - with mixed success

Manchester United and Everton meet once again the FA Cup on Friday night, with the Toffees in desperate need of a positive result at Old Trafford.

The two Premier League sides have a long-running history, especially when it comes to players. A total of 11 stars have moved directly from Old Trafford to Goodison Park, though not all of them have enjoyed success at the Toffees.

The latest to make the move is James Garner, who completed his transfer ahead of the current campaign. Here, Mirror Football looks at how the midfielder and the other 10 stars to move between United and Everton fared on Merseyside.

Andrei Kanchelskis - Moved in 1995

Winger Kanchelskis arrived at Old Trafford in 1991 from Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk, going on to win two Premier League titles. After four years, he was sold to Everton for a then club record fee of £5million.

Kanchelskis memorably scored two goals in a Merseyside derby win over Liverpool. But within 18 months of joining, the winger would leave Goodison Park amid financial problems for the Toffees, joining Fiorentina in 1997.

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Andrei Kanchelskis moved to Everton from Man Utd in 1995 (Daily Mirror)

John O'Kane - Moved in 1998

A member of the Class of 92, O'Kane would struggle to impress at United, unlike his former famous team-mates at youth level. He made just seven competitive appearances before being sold to Everton for £1m in 1998.

He became a regular starter at the Toffees, helping them to stay up on the final day of the season. But Walter Smith's arrival as manager saw his game-time reduced, and he was sold to Bolton in November 1999.

Jesper Blomqvist - Moved in 2001

Jesper Blomqvist won the Champions League, Premier League and FA Cup with Manchester United, but struggled at Everton (GETTY)

One of the heroes of the treble-winning season in the 1998/1999 season, Blomqvist was the man subbed off in the Champions League final for Teddy Sheringham, who started the comeback win over Bayern Munich.

Injuries severely disrupted his time at Old Trafford, though, making just 25 appearances in three seasons. He joined Everton on a short-term contract, but fared little better at the Toffees and left after just eight months.

Phil Neville - Moved in 2005

The younger Neville brother won six Premier League titles with United after coming through the ranks as one of the Class of '92. He was sold to Everton in 2005, with his Premier League debut coming against the Red Devils.

The versatile full-back-turned-midfielder would quickly become a fan-favourite at Goodison Park and was named captain in January 2007. He helped the Toffees reach the final of the 2009 FA Cup, which they lost to Chelsea. Neville later retired from playing in 2013 and has since gone into management.

Tim Howard - Moved in 2006

Tim Howard became a club legend at Everton after struggling at United (Getty Images)

Goalkeeper Tim Howard started well at United but his star quickly faded and he lost his place to first Roy Carroll and then Edwin van der Sar, though he did start as the Red Devils won the 2004 FA Cup final.

He joined Everton on loan in 2006, with the deal becoming permanent in February 2007. Howard became a club legend at the Toffees, memorably scoring against Bolton, before leaving in 2016.

Louis Saha - Moved in 2008

Louis Saha struggled with injury at both United and Everton (Getty Images)

Though he struggled with injury during his four years at United, Saha was still a reliable player for the Red Devils. He scored 42 goals in 120 games, winning two Premier League titles.

The striker was sold to Everton in 2008, though injuries again disrupted his time with the Toffees. His most memorable goal came in the 2009 FA Cup, when he scored the quickest goal in the final in the competition's history.

Darron Gibson - Moved in 2012

Darron Gibson saw his career wrecked by an injury after joining Everton (PA)

While he was widely tipped to be a regular player for United after breaking into the senior set-up in 2008, Gibson's career quickly took a downhill turn. He joined Everton in 2012, becoming a key player for the Toffees.

But a serious cruciate knee ligament injury 18 months later all but put paid to his time at Goodison Park and he barely featured afterwards before leaving for Sunderland in 2017.

Tom Cleverley - Moved in 2015

Tom Cleverley struggled at both United and Everton (GETTY)

Cleverley failed to live up to his early potential, having been seen as a potential replacement for Paul Scholes by Sir Alex Ferguson. He left Old Trafford in the summer of 2015, joining Everton on a free transfer.

After a successful first season at Goodison Park, he fell out of favour under Ronald Koeman and was sent to Watford on loan in 2017, with the move later becoming permanent.

Morgan Schneiderlin - Moved in 2017

Morgan Schneiderlin failed to impress at United and Everton (Getty Images)

Schneiderlin joined United in 2015 after impressing for Southampton, but struggled at Old Trafford. He joined Everton after just 18 months, with the Toffees paying £25m.

The Frenchman was a regular starter in his first season at Goodison Park but soon endured more problems with a lack of playing time, which led to him departing in 2020 for Ligue 1 side Nice.

Wayne Rooney - Moved in 2017

The England legend earned a big money move to Manchester United after breaking through at Everton. He became a legend at Old Trafford, as well as the record goalscorer in the history of the club.

He returned to Everton on a free transfer in 2017, but would only spend a year back on Merseyside before joining MLS side DC United a year later after scoring 11 goals in 40 appearances.

James Garner - Moved in 2022

Garner joined Everton in the summer but is currently sidelined with injury (Tony McArdle/Everton FC via Getty Images)

A highly-rated youngster at United, Garner spent most of his time as a senior player at the Red Devils out on loan. He was sold to Everton in the summer for a fee in the region of £9million.

Just as he was starting to be handed game-time by Frank Lampard, though, the Englishman was hit by a back injury, which is expected to rule him out until at least February.

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