Former Lazio and England manager Sven Goran Eriksson was on course to replace Sir Alex Ferguson in 2002, with the then-Manchester United boss revealing the Eriksson, who was in charge of the England national team at the time, agreed verbal terms with the United hierarchy. I think they'd done the deal all right. I don't know for certain, but I'm sure it was Eriksson. I think they'd shaken hands. They couldn't put anything on paper because he was still England manager," said Ferguson, as reported in the Times (via BBC Sport). Eriksson had won multiple titles with his previous clubs Degerfors IF, IFK Goteburg, Benfica and Lazio, and was viewed as the ideal man to ensure the post-Ferguson years would go smoothly. But then the Scottish manager had a change of heart and decided do renew his deal with Manchester United, which saw Eriksson remain with England until 2006.
Crippy Cooke, 23, is a freelance Football Writer contributing to What Culture. He's had work featured on Zoo, MSN, London 24, The Telegraph, The Huffington Post, and was recently named Writer of the Year on FTBpro - while also a nominee for Best Male Blog in the Football Blogging Awards.
