Diego Forlan and 10 Manchester United Players Sir Alex Ferguson Wrongly Sold

With both fans and the media lambasting Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger for once again losing top players to "more competitive" clubs, I've decided to give the Frenchman a break. 

Rather than fueling the incessant media criticism surrounding the supposedly unambitious Frenchman, I'll instead focus my scrutiny on Wenger's chief rival for nearly two decades, Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson.

Initially figuring this would be a reasonable task, I quickly discovered that I had my work cut out for me.

Unlike Wenger, Fergie historically manages to either keep his best players until their retirement or replaces them with emerging stars. 

For example, United should have struggled after losing top scorer Ruud van Nistelrooy in 2006. Undeterred by the Dutchman's move to Real Madrid, Fergie more than adequately replaced him with the dynamic Cristiano Ronaldo, although the emergence of Wayne Rooney certainly helped matters as well.

Ronaldo's departure in 2009 should have seen United humbly surrender to billionaire-backed clubs Chelsea and Manchester City.

Entirely unfazed by this seemingly tragic loss, Sir Alex relied on a young Rooney to provide the brilliance which would see United edge both rivals. Though Chelsea did grab the 2010 league title, Fergie's boys rebounded and won the 2011 title on their way to their third Champions League Final in four years. (2008, 2009, 2011)

Nevertheless, one-sided defeats to Barcelona in the 2009 and 2011 Champions League Finals reveal that even the best managers make mistakes in the transfer market. Perhaps if Fergie had decided to keep this or that player, his side might have pushed past that Catalan menace.

With this thought in mind, here is my list of the top ten wrongly sold United players who would have helped the wily Scot add even more silverware to his collection.

10. Tim Howard

United fans might raise their eyebrow after reading this selection.

Does this guy really believe that keeping Tim Howard would have been better than signing Edwin Van der Sar?

Well, not necessarily.

Van der Sar was clearly one of the best keepers in the game, but he signed with United at the advanced age of 34.

While Van der Sar provided six excellent years of service to the United cause, Fergie could have perhaps avoided the present uncertainty regarding his current goalkeeper situation by showing more patience with Tim Howard instead of allowing him to move to Everton.

Had Fergie made him the undisputed No. 1 for the 2005-2006 season, the then 26-year-old Howard could have perhaps discovered the impressive form which has seen him emerge as one of the EPL's finest keepers over the past five seasons.

Now 32, Howard could have protected the United post for the past six seasons and then continued as Fergie's No. 1 for the remainder of the decade. Unfortunately, after his brilliant form in 2003-04, Howard suffered tremendously in the next season, exhausting Ferguson's patience.

9. Ryan Shawcross

Never quite integrating into the United first team despite a decently successful youth career, Ryan Shawcross has proceeded to excel in Stoke City's authentically English tactical system (though, interestingly enough, they are managed by a Welshman.)

An energetic and impetuous player who doesn't think twice about slicing right through the frail bodies of Arsenal players, Shawcross would have been a dream replacement for the oft-injured Rio Ferdinand.

Though Phil Jones seems to be integrating nicely into United's back four, keeping Shawcross would have at least allowed Fergie to keep the roughly £20 million he invested in the former Blackburn player.

8. Cristiano Ronaldo

One of the most dynamic and technically-gifted footballers in the history of the Beautiful Game, Ronaldo is probably the most complete attacking player ever to feature for Ferguson's United.

However, his insatiable thirst for touches and domination of the center forward position ultimately prevented other skilled attackers including Wayne Rooney, Nani, and Dimitar Berbatov from fully contributing their talents to the Red Devils' cause. 

While he was sorely missed following his £80 million move to Real Madrid in the summer of 2009, fans have since come to embrace Rooney, Nani, Chicharito, and new addition Ashley Young as the faces of United's lethal attack.

Nevertheless, most fans would agree that there were few experiences quite as exhilarating as watching Ronaldo line up for a free kick or dribble past the entire opposing squad.

While United may not be any worse without him, they certainly are less fun to watch.

I think Fergie would agree.

7. Carlos Tévez

Despite his poor temperament and insistence that his club always play "Carlito's Way", the feisty Argentine has proven himself to be a world-class goal scorer throughout his professional career. 

With Sir Alex possessing an uncanny ability to manage similarly troubled souls, Tévez would have appeared to be an ideal candidate to link up with Wayne Rooney following Cristiano Ronaldo's departure.

Had the then 25-year-old stuck around Old Trafford, he could have eased the pressure on Rooney and provided the spark to see the Red Devils past Bayern Munich in the 2010 Champions League quarterfinals and past Chelsea in the race for the English Premier League (EPL) Championship.

Unfortunately, Fergie failed to convert Tévez's two-year loan into a permanent move despite a £25.5 million offer to his third party owners.

While he would go on to top the EPL scoring charts in the 2010-2011 season, the Argentine is now surplus to requirements at Eastlands and seems poised to move to another club. 

One could only wonder how the fortunes of both parties (I probably should say all three parties) would have changed had Tévez accepted Fergie's offer to do his damage for the world's biggest club.

6. Nicky Butt

Though too young to fully appreciate the extent of his contributions to Manchester United, I suspect Nicky Butt would have risen to international prominence had he featured for another English Premier League side. 

Often resigned to the substitute's bench behind Roy Keane and Paul Scholes, Butt ultimately secured a move to Newcastle.

Yet, if only to honor "the forgotten fledgling", Fergie should have eventually integrated Butt into the lineup ahead of an aging Roy Keane. 

5. David Beckham

Leaving Manchester United was the biggest mistake of David Beckham's career.

While he doesn't appear to have admitted as much—with the circumstances surrounding his departure steeped in secrecy (although his shoe incident with Ferguson was well-documented,) the iconic Englishman's repeated admissions that he would embrace a return move to his boyhood club suggests otherwise.

Though he probably wouldn't have lasted as long as Paul Scholes or Ryan Giggs, the golden-footed right midfielder would have certainly helped bridge the gap between the graceful demise of Fergie's Fledglings and the emergence of Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney.

Nonetheless, his signature bended free kicks have forever endeared him to Man U supporters as one of the greatest to ever play the game.

4. Gerard Piqué

Another first-class defender, Piqué happily returned to his boyhood club after realizing he would fail to break the dominant partnership between Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand in United's central defense.

In hindsight, Fergie probably would have offloaded Ferdinand and signed the Spanish international to a long-term extension.

Unlike the occasional English captain, Piqué rarely suffers injury and regularly contributes to the attack. While he occasionally suffers horrible lapses in judgment, the 24-year-old is generally reliable and will probably feature in Barcelona's starting eleven for the next decade.

While he probably could not have helped United to victory in either of their two Champions League Final losses, Piqué's absence in the Barcelona back line could have perhaps allowed Ronaldo or Rooney to find enough space to slip a shot past Victor Valdés.

3. Diego Forlán

Probably the best player to ever qualify for a "worst players" list, Diego Forlan simply failed to score enough goals for United. There were glimpses, of course, but not enough consistency for Ferguson's liking. Just look at current benchwarmer Dimitar Berbatov—a genius on the pitch, but not nearly often enough, for verification.

Rocking those ridiculous cornrows could summarize his doomed fate at Old Trafford.

However, his stunning performances for both Atletico Madrid and Uruguay have demonstrated his unique ability to convert an otherwise average squad into a side capable of competing with the best teams in the world.

Though Fergie can't be blamed for replacing him with the likes of Ronaldo and Rooney, I suspect that a mature Forlán's soothing influence and composed play could have perhaps gifted United with an unexpected goal against Barcelona in either of their recent Champions League Final losses.

2. Giuseppe Rossi

Scoring four goals in six appearances for United and nine goals in 19 appearances while on loan at Parma, Giuseppe Rossi would appear to have demonstrated enough ability to earn Sir Alex's approval.

Yet, perhaps fearing a side already featuring Ronaldo and Rooney had no room for another young, promising striker, Fergie shipped the young Benedict Arnold (he was born in New Jersey, but elects to honor his parents' nationality in playing for Italy) off to La Liga side Villareal.

Highly coveted by a number of top teams, the now 24-year-old dynamo would have provided United with a sneakier, more agile attacker to combat highly technical opponents such as Barcelona and Arsenal.

With Rossi utilizing his touch and pace to link Rooney to the midfield, United would have surely had presented a far greater threat to Barcelona in the 2011 Champions League Final.

1. Jaap Stam

The perfect embodiment of a stalwart defender, Jaap Stam defended his team's goal more enthusiastically than just probably any other player in the history of the game. 

Entirely unafraid to attack an opponent over any perceived injustice, Stam surprisingly managed to remain on the pitch long enough to lead the United defense through one of the most successful spell in the club's history.

In the summer of 2001, Fergie surprisingly accepted a £15.3 million offer from Lazio for his star center half and then inexplicably signed 35-year-old Laurent Blanc as his replacement.  While Blanc struggled, Staam continued playing at a high level until 2007.

Having realized this mistake, Sir Alex now seems hesitant to deal the aging and injury-plagued Ferdinand.