Gerrard reveals how he rejected Man United move after Ferguson approach | OneFootball

It’s not often we hear about genuine attempts to take one of our own to Old Trafford, but Steven Gerrard has now revealed exactly how he handled one of the boldest transfer approaches in Premier League history.

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Speaking on Stick to Football via The Overlap, alongside Gary Neville, the Liverpool legend lifted the lid on how close Manchester United thought they could come to signing him.

Ferguson’s plan to take Gerrard to Manchester United

Neville explained that Alex Ferguson personally tasked him with trying to convince the midfielder during an international break in 2004.

He recalled: “So, I have this conversation with Sir Alex Ferguson, which was quite a bizarre one.”

At the time, there was heavy interest from elsewhere, particularly Chelsea, but the United boss had a bold idea of his own.

Neville continued: “I think Chelsea, it was the point where Chelsea were coming in too, and he just said, ‘Look, just go and knock on his door,’.”

The Scot’s confidence in pulling off the move was summed up in one memorable line.

“And basically said, ‘I’ll go and get him from Liverpool myself, and I’ll walk him back down the East Lancs.’”

That message was then delivered directly, with Neville admitting: “So, I actually went in with that line to Steven.”

Gerrard’s response showed exactly what Liverpool means

Despite the scale of the approach, the outcome was never really in doubt for us as supporters.

Neville revealed he received “the most polite, respectful, no.”

Before adding what that actually meant in reality: “It was the politest, respectful ‘f off’ I’ve had in my life.”

That moment sums up everything about Gerrard’s relationship with Liverpool, something we’ve seen time and time again, whether it’s his loyalty as a player or his continued connection to the club since retirement.

Neville even admitted the idea of the transfer barely registered with our former No.8.

He said Ferguson may have considered it seriously, but Gerrard himself only entertained it for a fleeting moment.

“He considered it, he considered it… for three seconds.”

Given everything we know about the Huyton-born midfielder, this just reinforces what we’ve always believed and he’s now putting in the work to keep others at Anfield.

There are transfers that define football history, and then there are ones that were never going to happen, no matter who came knocking.