"The history of the club, the players that were here, what they'd achieved. For me, that was the place I wanted to be.

I wanted to go there and put my marker down on this club and play for the biggest club, for me, in the world.

As soon as my agent said that… we didn't even meet Liverpool!" tambah Young.

Sebaliknya, Samir Nasri memilih bergabung dengan Manchester City seharga 24 juta poundsterling dari Arsenal pada tahun yang sama meski awalnya lebih tertarik dengan proyek Sir Alex Ferguson.

"At first, my choice was United," aku Nasri.

Ia mengungkapkan telah bertemu langsung dengan Ferguson di Paris, namun agennya memberikan pertimbangan lain mengenai prospek masa depan bersama City.

"I met Sir Alex Ferguson in Paris; we talked and I was really interested in his project.

With my agents, Jean-Pierre Bernes and Alain Migliaccio, we had to decide," jelas Nasri.

Agen Nasri meyakinkan bahwa ia hanya akan menjadi salah satu dari banyak pemain bintang di United, sementara City menawarkan proyek masa depan yang lebih serius setelah menjuarai Piala FA.

"They told me, 'You can go there, but you'll just be one among many.

City, on the other hand, won the FA Cup last year, they have a solid project, people behind them want to do something serious, it's the team of tomorrow, so think about it.'

And I thought they were right," urai Nasri.

Satu tahun berselang, Robin van Persie menolak tawaran gaji tinggi dari City demi bergabung dengan United.

Sementara pada tahun 2016 Eric Bailly menjadi rekrutan pertama Jose Mourinho setelah meyakinkan sang bek di kediamannya.

"In the summer of 2016 there were many rumours," kenang Bailly.

Ia menceritakan momen saat dirinya berada di Pantai Gading bersama ibunya ketika menerima panggilan telepon langsung dari nomor Portugal milik Mourinho.

"I was in Ivory Coast, in the dining room at home with my mother when the phone rang.

It was a Portuguese number; Mourinho," pungkas Bailly.

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