10 Man Utd Players Who Nearly Signed For Liverpool

9. Karel Poborsky

Former Czech international Karel Poborsky arrived at Old Trafford in the summer of 1996 with a big reputation, on the back of a strong showing in the European Championships. After two years, 33 appearances and five league goals, it soon became apparent that Ferguson had erred, and the winger famous for his trademarked 'Poborsky lob' was shown the door. However, whilst he was still hot property following a sparkling international showing, he had been at the centre of a bitter transfer wrangle between Liverpool and Man United. With Czech compatriot Patrik Berger having rejected the advances of the Merseyside club - for the time being - the Liverpool hierarchy sought to hijack United's bid for the Slavia Prague winger. Despite meeting with Slavia Prague officials, a deal was unable to be thrashed out, and Manchester United won the race for talented 24 year old. A mooted transfer involving Poborsky and the Reds would later resurface, as a two-goal salvo for Benfica in a pre-season friendly caught the eye of Gerard Houllier in 1999, but nothing would come of it. One would suspect that the Czech international's laboured two year in Manchester, during which time he played second fiddle to England's golden boy, was enough to keep him from ever returning to the Premier League.