We've had some fantastic strikers down the years - Ruud van Nistelrooy, Wayne Rooney, Robin van Persie, Andy Cole and Teddy Sheringham just to name a few - and Alan Shearer would probably have gone on to emulate each of those in terms of silverware were it not for his love of Newcastle. Upon leaving Blackburn Rovers in 1996, Sir Alex Ferguson tried desperately to persuade the forward to move to Old Trafford, but it was all futile, with the legendary No.9 instead joining his boyhood club Newcastle where he ended his career in 2006. The Premier League's all-time leading goalscorer with 260 goals, Shearer came within inches of scoring most of those in a Red rather than a Black and White jersey.
"If it wasn't for my love of Newcastle then I would've had to sign for Sir Alex. I was that close I'd actually found a house in Manchester". The forward recently said.
Joseph is an accredited football journalist and has interviewed nearly all of the current 20 Barclay's Premier League managers. He is also a correspondent for Bleacher Report and has written for Caught Offside and Give Me Football.
