Manchester United and Aberdeen legend Sir Alex Ferguson has revealed that he “turned down” three English clubs after the advice he received from one figure.
Sir Alex Ferguson had an incredible impact during his time in Scotland, with the former Manchester United manager achieving remarkable success with Aberdeen.
The 82-year-old iconic Scot led the club to three Scottish Premier Division titles, four Scottish Cups and a Scottish League Cup during his time in charge.
However, a defining achievement for Ferguson at the Pittodrie Stadium was capturing the European Cup Winners’ Cup with Aberdeen.
Aberdeen famously defied the odds in the 1983 European Cup Winners’ Cup final and completed a legendary 2-1 win over La Liga club Real Madrid.
Ferguson turned down three clubs for Man Utd
Sir Alex Ferguson’s legendary spell at Aberdeen came to an end after he completed a sensational move to Manchester United in 1986.
Ron Atkinson was axed from Old Trafford in 1986 and former United chairman Martin Edwards turned to ex-Aberdeen boss Ferguson as his replacement.
Speaking on TNT Sports, Ferguson sat down with Rangers legend Ally McCoist and reflected on his legendary career in management, both at United and at Aberdeen.
Ferguson revealed that three English clubs – Arsenal, Wolves and Tottenham – had all made an approach for him and he rejected the moves to each team.
The United legend admitted that former Aberdeen chairman Dick Donald told him to stay at the Pittodrie and only make the move away if the Red Devils came knocking.
“I turned down Arsenal, I turned down Wolverhampton Wanderers and I turned down Tottenham,” Ferguson said.
“The reasons were that Dick Donald… I said to him one day, ‘Maybe it’s time [to leave].’
“He says, ‘Don’t talk like that, you’ve got a great setup up here, you should only go to one club – Man Utd.’ So I never budged until that came along.”
When asked if he immediately wanted to sign for United in 1986, Ferguson responded: “Absolutely. I couldn’t get there quick enough.”
Ferguson on his Man Utd move
Ferguson’s legendary spell at United came to an end in 2013 after he led the Red Devils to their last Premier League title at the end of the 2012-13 campaign.
The former Aberdeen boss, who is regarded as one of the best managers of all time, admitted that there was “trepidation” surrounding his move to Old Trafford.
“I have to say there was a lot of trepidation about it,” he said.
“Travelling down that morning, in the plane with Martin Edwards and the lawyer Maurice Watkins, I was asking a lot of questions and I wasn’t getting all the answers.
“Wee Gordon Strachan used to phone me quite a lot and I didn’t get a great picture through that.
“I knew all the players, world-class names in many ways. I was determined to install something I did at Aberdeen and St Mirren, and that was to produce young players.”
Receive a digest of our best United content each week direct to your mailbox
