9. Pele
The maestro of Brazilian football, Pele revealed in 2006 that he turned down the opportunity to join Manchester United. You could be forgiven for thinking this may have been around the time that Pele joined New York Cosmos in the flourishing North American Soccer League, but no, according to the man himself it was in 1968, the year United won the European Cup. While we can only take Pele at his word, you might want to add a pinch of salt to the mix it is almost unthinkable that this rumour laid dormant for nearly forty years without seeing the light of day.