Former Manchester United first team coach Rene Meulensteen has revealed toPoker Firma the biggest transfer failures by Sir Alex Ferguson.
The Dutchman said the legendary manager unsuccessfully tried to sign Alan Shearer, Paul Gascoigne, Ronaldinho and Wesley Sneijder during his 26 year stint at Old Trafford.
“When Sir Alex Ferguson was at Manchester United in the early parts of his career – before I joined – I know that he was keen on signing Alan Shearer and Paul Gascoigne,” he said. “That was during the late 1980s and early 1990s, but it obviously never materialised.
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“After I joined the club in the 2000s, I do believe Sir Alex was really keen on signing Ronaldinho from Barcelona. He was absolutely exceptional during his time in Spain and he would have brought that superstar element with him to the club, which I don’t think Sir Alex would have minded as long as he was able to manage him.
“Sir Alex also looked at the possibility of signing Wesley Sneijder when Paul Scholes’ career was coming to an end. He would have been a very good player for Manchester United because he had so many similar features to Scholes in terms of linking the play– he had a great range of passing, could score from long range and was fantastic at finding key passes.
“The club asked me what my opinion of Sneijder was at the time because he was Dutch and I knew him, and I said that he would fit the bill perfectly for what the club wanted, but it never happened.”
Meulensteen spent 12 years at Old Trafford in two spells, first as youth team and reserve team coach from 2001-2006 before returning as first team coach from 2007-2013. During that period, the Red Devils won the Champions League, three Premier League titles and the Club World Cup.
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