It was reported in the national press earlier this week that Sergio Ramos, along with Manchester United legend Cristiano Ronaldo, handed in a transfer request to the Real Madrid board. The immediate reaction by the media was that United would be dusting off the chequebook, and signing both players this summer. Ronaldo has been linked with a return to the club at least once a month since the day he swapped the Manchester rain for Madrid’s sunnier climes. On the other hand, Ramos was on the brink of signing for the Red Devils last summer, only to sign a new contract at the Bernabéu at the last moment.
Ramos was just the latest in a long line of defenders who almost plied their trade at Old Trafford over the years, but for various reasons ended up elsewhere. For example, Barcelona legend Miguel Ángel Nadal almost joined the club in 1996. Given the injury problems United have had with their back four this season, even the retired ones from this collection could probably have a done a job for them.
Terry Butcher
The England legend (he of bloodied headband fame) came close to joining Manchester United on a couple of occasions. He admits that he was actually waiting for them to come in for him when he left Ipswich in 1986, but moved to Glasgow Rangers after Ron Atkinson never made a move. In 1987, new manager Alex Ferguson was on the verge of completing a £1 million deal, but when the centre-back suffered a broken leg, the deal was cancelled.
Leighton Baines
In 2013, one of the first areas new manager David Moyes tried to address was United’s ageing defence. He made a double bid to take Marouane Fellaini and Leighton Baines from his old club Everton, only for this to be rejected. On the last day of that summer transfer window, Fellaini ended up moving to Old Trafford for approximately the same price as Moyes had originally bid for both players. Baines stayed at Goodison Park, and still plays there to this day.
Marcel Desailly
Desailly was, without doubt, one of the greatest players of the 1990’s. Comfortable in midfield or defence, he won the Champions League in successive seasons with Marseille and Milan, and the World Cup and European Championship with France.
Alex Ferguson knew a great player when he saw one, and in 1996 persuaded him to sign a pre-contract agreement to move to Manchester the following summer. The details of why it didn’t happen have never been revealed, and Desailly himself is very cagey about the subject. In 1998, he swapped Milan for Stamford Bridge, representing Chelsea for the next six years.
Célio Silva
A Brazilian centre-back with a vicious free kick, he had never really been of heard of in England before United agreed a £2.2 million deal with Corinthians in 1997. It’s also fair to say that, when the deal collapsed due to work permit problems, he was never really heard of again. The official line was that he hadn’t played enough times for his country, and he remained in his homeland for the majority of his career.
Mark Lawrenson
The BBC pundit is a legend at Anfield following a seven-year stint with Liverpool, which saw five league titles and the European Cup among the list of trophies they amassed whilst Lawrenson was at the club.
Following his decision to quit Brighton and Hove Albion in 1981, Manchester United tried to interest the club in a deal involving squad players Ashley Grimes and Jimmy Nicholl to lower the transfer fee. Liverpool offered the full asking price of £900,000, which United couldn’t match having set aside the majority of their transfer budget to buy Bryan Robson, who moved to Old Trafford later that year.
Alessandro Nesta
Prior to the 2002 World Cup, Sir Alex Ferguson publicly admitted his interest in Lazio centre-back Nesta. With his club in financial meltdown, having to sell most of their best players, every major club in Europe was interested in securing his services. Nesta ended up joining Milan, winning the Champions League twice, while United turned their attentions to Rio Ferdinand, who joined in a £29 million British record transfer and went on to become a United legend.
Markus Babbel
Fresh from winning Euro ’96 with Germany, Babbel was given permission by Bayern Munich to hold talks with Manchester United after a fee of £5 million was agreed. Equally adept at playing full-back or centrally, Ferguson believed he would be a quality addition to his squad, but pulled out of the deal after failing to agree personal terms. Ironically, Babbel was in the Bayern side that lost the 1999 Champions League Final to United. He moved to Liverpool a year later, and was part of the side that won a treble of the FA Cup, League Cup and UEFA Cup in 2001.
Fábio Coentrão
Around the time that Marouane Fellaini was signing his contract for the Red Devils, chief executive Ed Woodward was working on a deal to bring in the Portuguese left-back on a season-long loan. The move collapsed when Madrid failed to sign a replacement, although given last year’s De Gea saga, it’s possible that a dodgy fax machine may have been involved. He stayed at Madrid until the beginning of this season, when he was loaned to Monaco.
Laurent Blanc
The only player in this list that eventually played for United, but if Alex Ferguson had got his way Blanc would have moved to Old Trafford a lot sooner. Recognising what a class act the French captain was, he immediately tried to sign him after Euro ’96. Then playing for Auxerre, he chose Barcelona as his preferred destination, and later had spells with Marseille and Inter.
Following the sale of Jaap Stam to Lazio in 2001, Ferguson finally got his man on a free transfer. Despite winning a Premier League title in his two-year spell in Manchester, he was 35 years old when he made the move, and clearly past his best. He isn’t remembered too fondly by United fans.
Glenn Hysén
Not many players can say they turned down the chance to join United twice, but Swedish centre-back Hysén did in the 1980’s. Following some sparkling performances for IFK Göteborg and PSV Eindhoven, both Manchester United and Liverpool expressed an interest in signing the defender, but he chose to move to Italy with Fiorentina in 1987.
His reputation increased during his two seasons in Serie A, and United once again made a bid for him. This time, Liverpool swooped and signed him from under the noses of their rivals. He initially impressed at Anfield, but when Graeme Souness replaced Kenny Dalglish as manager, Hysén fell out of favour. He returned to Sweden in 1992 and finished his career there.
Roberto Ríos
Alex Ferguson made several trips to watch the Spanish international centre-back in action for Real Betis during the 1996 – 97 season. Much like Célio Silva, not many had heard of Roberto Ríos prior to United’s interest, and when he moved to Athletic Bilbao the following summer, not much was heard from him after. The reason for this, however, may be due to the fact that persistent injuries meant that he retired in 2002 at the age of just 30, having played little more than 25 games in the previous three years.
Sol Campbell
In 2001, Sol Campbell could have had his pick of any club in the world. A free agent following the expiration of his contract with Tottenham Hotspur, he readily admits he almost moved to Old Trafford. His eventual choice was Arsenal, making himself an instant figure of hate for Spurs fans, and he went onto win two Premier League titles. He was a vital part of their 2004 side known as “The Invincibles”, who won the title without a single league defeat.
Mark Fish
The South African centre-back garnered a lot of praise for his role in helping his country win the 1996 Africa Cup of Nations. Having supported Manchester United as a boy, Fish was widely expected to sign for them as a replacement for the outgoing Steve Bruce.
After holding talks with representatives of United and Italian club Lazio, he decided on a move to Rome. After just one season in Serie A, he moved to the Premier League after all, and spent eight years in England, with Bolton Wanderers and Charlton Athletic respectively. Fans of both clubs now regard him as a legend.
