Manchester United legend Gary Neville almost had a hand in getting Arsenal icon Sol Campbell to Old Trafford long before he made his highly controversial move across north London
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Updated 12:15, 20 Mar 2025
Captain of Manchester United Gary Neville (L) and his Portsmouth counterpart Sol Campbell display their teams jerseys before the start of the friendly football match between the two English premiership teams in Abuja
Gary Neville almost managed to get Sol Campbell to sign for Manchester United
(Image: PIUS UTOMI EKPEI/AFP via Getty Images)
Sol Campbell has revealed how Gary Neville was involved in nearly engineering him a transfer to Manchester United before Alan Sugar stepped in. It was during his lengthy spell at Tottenham that Campbell caught the attention of Sir Alex Ferguson.
And Old Trafford icon Neville – who came through the England youth ranks at the same time as Campbell – personally reached out in an attempt to facilitate the switch. But Campbell is convinced interference from Tottenham's former part-owner and chairman Lord Sugar effectively derailed the potential deal.
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While he may not have moved to Manchester, Campbell eventually made the contentious decision to leave for Spurs' arch-nemesis Arsenal and earned the moniker 'Judas' from the Spurs faithful.
During a recent appearance on the Stick to Football podcast (via The Mirror), brought to you by Sky Bet, Campbell said: "You [Neville] bloody called me! I remember, I was having an afternoon nap, and the phone call came through and Gary asked me if I fancied United.
"I must have been about 21 then... it did go further, but Sugar blocked it."
At the time at United, Steve Bruce was nearing the end of his career at Old Trafford when Ferguson supposedly showed an interest in Campbell. David May was soon recruited to partner with Gary Pallister in defence, and Ronny Johnsen joined in 1996 to further bolster the team's defensive ranks after they missed out on the Spurs man.
Campbell, 50, didn't go into detail when asked whether he got along with Sugar. But he did mention that "a lot of players have had difficult times with him".
His trajectory in football may well have changed significantly had The Apprentice supremo not interfered. In 2001, Campbell's tenure at Tottenham ultimately came to a controversial end as his contract expired.
Campbell chose to disregard offers from abroad and instead switched allegiances to Arsenal. That's despite the fact Tottenham made him an offer that would have made him the highest-paid player in their history.
When quizzed about which teams raised interest during his final months at Spurs, Campbell said: "Bayern came in really earlier, but you don't know – is it a newspaper phoning you up? Back in those days, you didn't know.
Sol Campbell on the Sticks to Football podcast
Campbell revealed all on the Stick to Football podcast
"Liverpool came down, but the manager didn't come for the meeting. I went to Inter, had a chat with them. Barcelona came in at the end, but you just don't know, it's all propaganda. Arsenal obviously came in at the end."
Now 50, Campbell reflects on a career that saw him win the League Cup with Tottenham in 1999. However, he then went on to secure two FA Cups and two Premier League titles with Arsenal, including a crucial spot in the famed 'Invincibles' squad that went unbeaten in 2003/04.
Following a successful five-season spell at Arsenal, Campbell took his talents to Portsmouth where he continued to showcase his abilities during the twilight of his career. His journey didn't stop there as he later represented Notts County and Newcastle in brief stints before re-joining Arsenal for a short tenure prior to his retirement in 2011.