Photo by Molly Darlington/Getty Images
Photo by Molly Darlington/Getty Images
Everton have had some interesting transfer near misses over the years.
In the early 1990s, Everton nearly signed Brazil striker, Muller. While Danny Murphy admitted that Everton tried to sign him when he left Liverpool too.
Of course, more recent examples include the whole Folarin Balogun fiasco and a failed move for Luis Diaz before he became a superstar.
Now, another high-profile footballing figure has admitted he nearly signed for Everton.
Indeed, speaking on All Out Football, former Premier League Golden Boot winner, Dion Dublin, has shared how he nearly made a move to Goodison Park in his playing days.
Dion Dublin nearly joined Everton twice
Dublin shared a story of how he nearly joined Everton when he left Cambridge United.
The striker had been flying for Cambridge, and numerous top Premier League clubs were in for him.
Dublin admits that he met Howard Kendall at Everton in 1992, but, in the end, Alex Ferguson convinced him to join Manchester United.
“I went to Everton. Howard was there. Went to the training ground. Howard came, “come on in, come on in.” He went and popped the champagne. Come on, get yourself a drink and I was like f—ng hell gaffer. It’s 11:00 in the morning. Jesus. Players are out there training,” Dublin said.
“So, I had a glass of champagne and I went to see Sir Alex. Sir Alex was waiting for me in the car park. I turned up with, um, my reps and he turned up with the financial people and he literally went like that ‘Come with me. Come with me, big man.’
“Come with me. He said, “You guys go and talk contracts. Come with me. Come with me.” And he walked me like this from the car park into the stadium.
Dublin would then later discuss the fact that he was supposed to join Everton when he left Manchester United too, but that deal collapsed and he joined Coventry instead.
“Your move away from Man Utd was going to be Everton? That collapsed and you ended up at Coventry. How did you feel moving from Man Utd to a smaller club like Coventry?” Dublin was asked.
“It was hard to move,” Dublin said.
“The manager said, I don’t want you to go. I’d rather you stay because you can we can use you for European football. You will play.
“I said, Gaffer, I’m going to be playing four games, three games a season. I can’t do that I’m fit now.
“He said, okay, if you really want to go, you can go with my blessing and I wish you all the best”
Dublin’s time at Coventry would go on to define his career. He would win the Premier League Golden Boot with the Sky Blues in 1998, and eventually he would be inducted into the club’s Hall of Fame.
Meanwhile, Everton could’ve done with a striker like Dublin in the mid-1990s. Duncan Ferguson led the line well, but goals were hard to come by in that team, and while Dublin was winning a Golden Boot in 1998, Everton finished 17th and were almost relegated.
Everton’s fate in that period may well have been different if they had Dublin leading their line.