Sir Alex Ferguson would not let Real Madrid sign one ‘Class of ‘92’ star and had a clear-cut reason for denying the move, according to a Manchester United legend.
David Beckham, Nicky Butt, Ryan Giggs, Gary Neville, Phil Neville and Paul Scholes were among the key Class of ‘92 stars to break out at Manchester United.
The six aforementioned United players emerged through the youth academy and Sir Alex Ferguson brought them into the Red Devils’ first team in the 1990s.
Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs and Gary Neville were the first three Class of ’92 members who spent their entire senior playing careers at Old Trafford.
The six members of the Class of ‘92 enjoyed incredible success during their time at the Red Devils, including their involvement in Ferguson’s treble-winning team.
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(EXCLUSIVE COVERAGE: MINIMUM FEES APPLY - 250GBP OR LOCAL EQUIVALENT, PER IMAGE) (L-R) Sir Alex Ferguson, Ryan Giggs, Nicky Butt, David Beckham, G...
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Ferguson rejected Class of ’92 star’s move to Real Madrid
Speaking on talkSPORT, Nicky Butt revealed that Sir Alex Ferguson would not allow him to sign for Real Madrid and claimed that Los Blancos had “come in” for him.
The 49-year-old former Manchester United midfielder lifted six Premier League titles, a Champions League and three FA Cups during his spell at Old Trafford.
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Butt, who made 385 appearances for the Red Devils, would leave United in 2004 and the Red Devils legend completed a move to Newcastle.
The Class of ’92 star admitted that Real Madrid signed Thomas Gravesen instead of him after Ferguson prevented a move to the Spanish capital.
According to Butt, Ferguson’s major reason for denying the transfer was that he considered Madrid to be a “rival” team for him.
When asked by Jim White if he would have left United if Madrid came in for him, Butt responded: “They did. They did come in for me.
“Remember when [Thomas] Gravesen went? Gravesen went.
“They could have spoke to me before that and Sir Alex wouldn’t let me go to a rival. That was his reasoning behind it.”
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Butt was ready for Madrid transfer
Thomas Gravesen left Everton in the 2005 January transfer window and completed a move to Madrid, with Los Blancos agreeing a fee worth around £2.5m.
The former Denmark midfielder netted once for Madrid and made 49 appearances for the Spanish side before he left the club and signed for Celtic in 2006.
Following his exit from Old Trafford in 2004, Butt played for Newcastle until 2010 – including a brief loan spell at Birmingham City – before he signed for South China.
Butt revealed that he was ready to sign for Madrid, but he is now happy that he didn’t make the move after witnessing Gravesen’s spell at Los Blancos.
“Yeah, I even got the dog’s passport because I thought we were gonna go,” he continued.
“But looking at how Gravesen had to work, I’m glad I didn’t now because that was a shift for him with all them lot.”
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