How Manchester United almost signed Van Dijk, Haaland and the legendary Ballon d’Or winner

Manchester United They have secured some of the best players ever through their famous academy, however, the Red Devils have also signed some icons.

Sir Alex Ferguson He won races to bring Eric Cantona, Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney to Old Trafford, with all three becoming Manchester United legends.

However, with those at Old Trafford always on the lookout for high-profile signings, they have missed out on some star signings over the years.

10 stars who were close to signing for Manchester United

Virgil van Dijk

Now he has become a Liverpool icon and arguably one of the best centre-backs of all time. Virgil van Dijk was in demand at Old Trafford Before moving to Anfield.

Jose Mourinho wanted to sign a top centre-back and shortlisted Van Dijk, Michael Keane and Victor Lindelof. Instead of spending money on the Dutchman who was starring at Southampton, United spent more than £30m on Lindelof from Benfica.

Ronaldo

In 1996, Ronaldo made his name at PSV Eindhoven as a 20-year-old, scoring entertaining goals in the Netherlands.

He was a wanted man as a result Ferguson He participated in bringing it to Manchester. Ronaldo was offered to United for £20m, however, this was seen as an exaggeration at the time, with Barcelona signing the Brazilian star instead. He won the Ballon d’Or twice, in 1997 and 2002.

Ronaldinho

Another Brazilian icon who could easily have been a Manchester United player was Ronaldinho, with Ferguson looking to replace David Beckham in 2003.

Manchester United were looking to seal a deal for Ronaldinho who was at Paris Saint-Germain, but after Barcelona failed to sign Beckham, they dealt the Red Devils a blow by signing the Brazilian. United had signed a striker that summer, with Cristiano Ronaldo moving to Manchester.

Rivaldo

Continuing the trend of Brazilian stars that Manchester United missed takes us to Rivaldo. The Red Devils had just won the treble in 1999 and Ferguson wanted to sign the striker from Barcelona.

After winning the Ballon d’Or that year, Rivaldo’s relationship with Barcelona coach Louis van Gaal was not great, but United missed the chance to seal the deal.

Patrick Vieira

One of Manchester United’s greatest rivals in the Premier League has been Arsenal midfielder Patrick Vieira, and United have already tried to sign the Frenchman from the Gunners on two occasions.

Ferguson believes Vieira wanted to move to Old Trafford in 2001 and 2003, and there was talk of a £22m transfer once Beckham left for Real Madrid. Instead, Vieira signed a new contract to stay with Arsene Wenger.

Eden Hazard

Chelsea legend Eden Hazard looked set to sign for Manchester United in 2012 before a problem arose with his agent.

The Blues paid Lille £32m to sign the Belgian, but the deal with the Red Devils collapsed after United refused to pay £6m to Hazard’s agent to complete the deal.

Instead of Hazard, Manchester United signed Shinji Kagawa from Borussia Dortmund.

Cesc Fabregas

After being involved in a clash with Ferguson at Old Trafford, Cesc Fabregas could have worked under the Red Devils boss after he tried to sign him from Barcelona in 2003.

Manchester United then tried again in 2013 under David Moyes, however, he received two offers that were rejected by those at the Nou Camp, with Fabregas instead playing for Arsenal and Chelsea in the Premier League.

Zinedine Zidane

In 1996, Zinedine Zidane was on the move from Bordeaux, and Cantona urged Ferguson and Manchester United to bring him to Old Trafford.

Former United boss Martin Edwards said the move failed to cross the line as Ferguson believed Zidane was not what they needed at the time, with the Frenchman instead continuing to play a star role for Juventus and Real Madrid.

Erling Haaland

Manchester City star Erling Haaland could now easily sign for the Red Devils during the 2019/20 winter transfer window.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was in charge at the time and knew Haaland from his time at Molde, however, despite talks about a move to Old Trafford, the Norwegian rejected Manchester United and instead signed for Borussia Dortmund.

Alan Shearer

Alan Shearer, the Premier League’s all-time top scorer, has rejected a move to Manchester United on two occasions. The first came in 1992 when he joined Blackburn from Southampton, and the second came four years later when he joined Newcastle.

Ferguson was personally involved in a deal to sign Shearer in 1996, and looked set to win the race, before Shearer’s agent contacted the Manchester United chairman and told him they had decided to join Newcastle.

Gareth Bale

One of the most decorated British players of all time after winning five Champions League titles with Real Madrid is Wales star Gareth Bale.

However, he could have signed for Manchester United instead of Tottenham in 2007, with a £10m transfer being talked about prior to his move to north London. Ferguson blamed Saints, not Bale, for the deal to collapse.