10 Biggest Premier League Transfers That Nearly Happened

Arsenal fans look away now! The club were on the verge of signing Cristiano Ronaldo in 2003 from Sporting Lisbon. Having given the Portuguese youngster a grand tour of Highbury and Arsenal's London Colney training facility, manager Arsene Wenger thought he had landed his man. But in a recurring theme of Arsenal's transfer activity over the last two decades, the move was halted by the club's frugal financial philosophy.

In a role reversal from Manchester United's pursuit of Alan Shearer in 1992, Alex Ferguson pounced to lure the winger to Old Trafford in a deal just shy of £13 million. Then Manchester United assistant manager, Carlos Queiroz, a fellow Portugal native, is said to have been instrumental in securing the transfer.

What Christiano Ronaldo has achieved in the fifteen years since his transfer to Manchester United is simply remarkable, and does not need repeating here. However, the history books would be profoundly different had the four time Ballon d'Or winner ended up in North London. It might not have prevented

Arsenal's decline, but it almost certainly would have softened the blow. His presence could have been crucial during Arsenal's transition to the Emirates stadium, and the profit the club would have made on his inevitable sale would have offset a large chunk of the debt accumulated in moving to the stadium.