6 Players You Didn't Know Juventus Almost Signed

in 2003, Cristiano Ronaldo moved from Sporting Lisbon to Manchester United for £12 million and the rest, as they say, is history. After a friendly with Sporting, some of the Red Devils' players had 'begged' Sir Alex Ferguson to sign the then 18 year old, claiming he was one of the best young players they had ever seen.

The winger hadn't only received interest from Manchester United though, Juventus had already made a move and were offering a swap deal to get the Portuguese star. Offering Marcelo Salas, the Serie A side were on the verge of completing the deal, when Salas backed out and joined River Plate instead. This is when United jumped in with their £12 million offer, one that Juventus couldn't match, forcing the Old Lady to back down, and lose out on one of the greatest ever players.