Tony Adams Reveals He Turned Down Rival Club Twice For Arsenal
REUTERS/Pepe Marin
Sir Alex Ferguson tried to sign Tony Adams twice, but the Arsenal legend didn’t move because of his loyalty towards the Gunners.
Tony Adams has lifted the lid on various incidents of his football career in his book that is being published in The Sun. Recently, a part of his book was a source of controversy, where he mocked his former manager by stating: “Arsene Wenger couldn’t coach his way out of a paper bag.”
The book, named Sober, which is being published in parts with The Sun, has now revealed that Tony Adams was unsuccessfully approached twice by Manchester United. The former Arsenal captain said: “Manchester United twice tried to sign me, but I turned them down both times because I was Arsenal through and through.”
Tony Adams then went on to sharing the details of the transfer approaches, as he revealed: “The first time was after we had won the title in 1991. It was at an England get-together and Bryan Robson spoke to me about it, perhaps having been asked by Sir Alex Ferguson to have a quiet word.
“The second United approach came in ’96, in the autumn just five weeks after I had stopped drinking and in that period of uncertainty when Arsene Wenger was taking over from the sacked Bruce Rioch.”
Often nicknamed as “Mr. Arsenal”, Tony Adams went on to win 10 major trophies during his 19 years at Arsenal. The defender wrapped up his playing career with a double in the year 2002, interestingly, beating Manchester United at Old Trafford to win the Premier League.
It’s difficult to imagine how things might have unfolded had Adams joined Manchester United. However, he wouldn’t have many regrets given his glorious success during his time at Arsenal.
He is currently managing Spanish team Granada, which has been relegated from La Liga.
Written by Shorya Panwar 
Has 20+ years of experience managing Schalke in Football Manager 2017. Believes wing-backs are the most complete footballers in the modern/evolved football. Writes weird stuff on his personal blog.