Louis van Gaal has made no secret of his audacious move to lure Bayern Munich superstar Arjen Robben to Old Trafford this summer, but while that transfer was never likely to bear fruition, it was ten years ago when Manchester United missed the boat with regards to the Dutchman's signature. Were it not for chief executive Peter Kenyon's dramatic change of allegiance, as he traded Old Trafford for the plush office of Stamford Bridge in September 2003, Robben's destination might very well have been Manchester. In the summer, Kenyon had opened talks with PSV Eindhoven on behalf of the Mancunian giants with regards to the acquisition of the talented 19 year old. After months of negotiating, Robben's father intimated that the boy was favouring a move to Old Trafford.
''We have taken a look around and have spoken with manager Alex Ferguson. We have a good feeling about it. We had permission to take a look at the club. Before we went to Manchester, we had two questions in mind. We would like to know how many matches Robben would play. Following talks with Ferguson, this could be 40 matches. It will be PSV or Manchester United.'' - Hans Robben, January 2004.
However, Kenyon had been at Chelsea for the last six months, so it was almost inevitable what would happen next. With inquiries into the possible acquisition of the Dutch winger, the proposed transfer to Manchester was stalled, leaving a frustrated Robben to lament that 'it would be fantastic if I could play for Manchester, but at the moment I just have to wait'. On March 2nd 2004, news broke that most Manchester United supporters were dreading - Arjen Robben had signed for Chelsea for a fee of £12 million, on a pre-contract.
''At the beginning I had a preference for Manchester because at the time Chelsea were buying a lot of players. It seemed they were buying, buying, buying without any structure and all I knew was that they had a rich man who was buying players. My meeting with Sir Alex Ferguson went very well and I was ready to sign. But I was convinced by Ranieri and Kenyon - they told me the whole Chelsea story and it appealed to me. I wasn't disappointed to miss out on United as in football, things happen very fast.'' - Arjen Robben, April 2004.
Recent Journalism & New Media graduate. Insatiable thirst for all things football, and hopes to break into the field of sports journalism in the near future.
Have made a significantly insignificant playing career out of receiving several slaps around the head for not passing the ball.
