Manchester United icon Paul Scholes has labelled Mark Bosnich as the club's most disappointing signing ever. Following the Red Devils' treble-winning season in 1999, Sir Alex Ferguson was on the hunt for a successor to Peter Schmeichel and signed Bosnich on a free transfer.
Bosnich, who had previously been with the club before visa issues forced his return to Australia, was brought back by Ferguson after establishing himself as one of the Premier League's top goalkeepers during seven years at Aston Villa. However, his time at United marked a notorious period in the club's history, with Ferguson struggling to find a reliable No.1 until Edwin van der Sar's arrival in 2005.
Despite helping United to a league title in his debut season, sharing game time with Massimo Taibi and Raimond van der Gouw, Scholes singled out Bosnich's 18-month stint as the club's worst-ever transfer.
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“I go back to the goalkeepers, when you had to try and replace Peter Schmeichel, which is always going to be difficult,” Scholes said on The Overlap. “We had a few. I was thinking [Massimo] Taibi, Mark Bosnich.
“I thought he was a good keeper at Villa, Mark Bosnich. He came to us, he was so unprofessional. Honestly, it was ridiculous. In shooting practice, you normally have like 15, 20 shots. After three shots, he’s knackered. ‘Oh no, get someone else in’.
“I never realised, he couldn’t kick a football. I’ve never seen anything like it. We played Everton away, first game of the season, and none of us picked up on it, he couldn’t reach the halfway line.
“There was no wind, it was a perfect day. But when you look at his feet, size 14s, honestly he was just kicking the floor all the time! Disappointing.”
Bosnich’s second spell at United got off to a troubling start as he was forced to rush to his own wedding after being released on bail over an alleged incident with a photographer at a strip club on his stag night. The keeper then dropped down in the pecking order at United, following Fabien Barthez's arrival at the club.
Bosnich's career took another hit after joining Chelsea as a back-up to Carlo Cudicini. He later received a ban from football in September 2002 for a positive cocaine test. The fall from grace led to a six-year hiatus due to drug addiction before Bosnich made a comeback with Central Coast Mariners.
Ferguson labelled Bosnich "a terrible professional" in his 2013 memoir, but the goalkeeper fired back at his former manager: "The fact remains that I was the only player he signed twice at Manchester United. I'm honoured to be mentioned. He's entitled to his view and I'm entitled to mine."
These days, Bosnich is a football pundit, regularly offering his expertise on Sky Sports News through video interviews from Australia, casting an informed eye over Premier League developments and topics surrounding United.
