Marseille and France midfielder Adrien Rabiot
Marseille and France midfielder Adrien Rabiot(Image: Getty Images)
Marseille and France midfielder Adrien Rabiot has admitted that he turned down transfers to Manchester United due to the position the club found itself in at the time of their approaches.
Rabiot made 31 appearances for the Ligue 1 club this season as they booked their place in next season's Champions League having finished a distant second to champions PSG. However, things could have been a lot different for the 30-year-old.
Speaking to The Athletic, Rabiot explained how he held talks with United on two separate occasions but chose against moving to Old Trafford. "It really could have happened two years ago, when I was coming to the end of my contract at Juventus and I finally decided to extend by a year," he explained.
"We had great talks, and there were written offers. But in the end, it didn’t happen.
"Last year as well, when I was free, they came back in again. I had good talks with them again.
"But it’s true that it was a bit tricky. The situation they’re in at the moment… I felt a bit of reticence about whether United were going to be able to go on and achieve great things.
"They’re in a bit of a hole at the moment." Both of United's approaches to Rabiot came while Erik ten Hag was manager of the club.
Former Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag
Former Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag
When the Reds made their first approach for the midfielder, they had been led on a wild goose chase by Frenkie de Jong the summer prior.
As for last season, United were in need of a central midfielder to play alongside Casemiro or Kobbie Mainoo and after being rejected by Rabiot, they instead made a move for Manuel Ugarte.
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