Sir Alex Fergsuon once failed to sign an England international while manager of Manchester United, after suggesting a transfer target take the bigger wages on offer elsewhere.
Having just secured Aston Villa's survival in the First Division in their first season back in the top flight, Martin Keown wanted assurances over both his and the club's future at the end of the 1988/99 season. Villa failed to provide him with that, though, and instead chose to move to Everton - despite the advances of Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United.
While the Red Devils weren't the preeminent force they were about to become under the Scotsman, they were still one of the biggest clubs in the country and were looking to make their next steps under Ferguson.
Sir Alex Ferguson failed to sign Martin Keown at Manchester United
The Manchester United manager showed Keown around Old Trafford but, ultimately, realised the wages on offer simply weren't enough. With Kewon 23 at the time, Ferguson suggested he might be better off taking the larger offer from Everton.
"I couldn’t agree a new deal with Villa; I was getting married and needed to sort out my future," Keown exclusively tells FourFourTwo. "Graham [Taylor] wasn’t communicating with me about his plans to bring in new players, so I was talking to other clubs.
"Everton were one, but Fergie had me at Old Trafford and Brian Clough talked to me at Nottingham Forest. Fergie showed me around, but he offered me half of what Everton did. It wasn’t all about money – I asked him plenty of questions and didn’t get the answers I wanted.
"To be fair, he knew I was getting married and suggested I think of my family and take the bigger wages at Goodison Park. I never regretted not going to United, but those conversations fuelled the fires further at Arsenal later, when United became our main rivals."
Indeed, Keown infamously struck Ruud van Nistelrooy on the back of the head after the Dutchman missed his penalty during a 0-0 draw at Old Trafford, preserving Arsenal's unbeaten record that season. Though it came some 14 years after Ferguson attempted to sign him, Keown's assertion highlights just how much he wanted to win when coming up against Manchester United.
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