Sir Alex Ferguson won hordes of trophies during his tenure as Manchester United manager but this was surely one of his greatest achievements. Mikael Silvestre enjoyed a hugely successful stint at the Red Devils, playing at left back and centre half and making more than 200 appearances. But by the summer of 2008, his days at the top level were clearly numbered. Ferguson must have been chuckling to himself as Arsene Wenger proceeded to sign the French defender for an undisclosed fee. What followed was an inevitable mess for the Gunners. Silvestre played at centre half during his two seasons at the club but having lost all his pace he was caught out several times in every game. The transfer made Silvestre the first player to move directly between the two clubs since Viv Anderson, who moved in the opposite direction. Of course this was later followed by Robin van Persie's move to Manchester. Looking at the success of each move, it appears Ferguson got one (or two) over Wenger in the dealings between the two clubs. The fact Wenger sought to replace Silvestre with Squillaci should tell you all need to know about his time at the Emirates.
