Former Manchester United captain Rio Ferdinand was a respected figure to all at Old Trafford, but not so much that Sir Alex Ferguson was ready to heed his transfer advice.
And the ex-England star has lifted the lid on two particular recommendations that went down like a lead balloon with his old gaffer. Ferdinand, 44, attempted to talk up deals for ex-Tottenham duo Jermain Defoe and Aaron Lennon when both were approaching or playing at the peaks of their powers.
Lennon – almost nine years Ferdinand's junior – was still developing in Leeds' academy when the centre-back was signed by the Red Devils in the summer of 2002. But it appears Ferdinand was already well aware of the talent, who would go on to become his team-mate at the 2006 World Cup in Germany.
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"Like Fergie, I’ve said to him, ‘From what I’ve seen in training, if he can replicate it in games, we need to get this guy,'" proclaimed the Old Trafford icon on his YouTube show, Vibe with Five. "But Fergie just never moved on it. We had so many players."
Ferguson went through a mountain of wing talent during his days with United, some of whom were far more successful than others. The club was also rarely short of striker talent under the Scot, but that didn't stop Ferdinand from tipping Defoe as another potential investment.
"The one player I always used to say to Ferguson, 'If you want to buy someone from our England team, it should be Defoe,'" he continued. "Because he wouldn’t have started for United all the time, but he would’ve been another type of 'Chicharito' [Javier Hernandez].
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"Defoe could come on, and all he cares about is scoring. And if we’re winning 5-0, he’ll want to make it 6-0. We would’ve got him in so many positions to score, it would’ve been a joke."
As anyone remotely familiar with United's recent history will know, Fergie never took up the chance to sign either attacker. The pair went on to make a combined 723 appearances for Tottenham (361 for Defoe, 362 for Lennon) and both played their final competitive matches in 2022.
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Given the hundreds of transfer deals he concluded in almost three decades at the club, it's only natural that some of Fergie's recruits didn't thrive at United However, the Scot's track record is nonetheless regarded as one of the best in the business, particularly when it came to spotting lesser-known talents from abroad.
However, Defoe and Lennon were two known quantities he apparently felt he could do without at the Theatre of Dreams. And it's safe to say Ferdinand has work to do before his side-hustle as an agent can really take off.
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