9 Reasons Why Alan Shearer Chose Newcastle Over Manchester United

3. The "Lure Of The Black-And-White No 9 Shirt"

This is something that every single Newcastle United supporter will be able to relate to - even if those who aren't associated with the club may find it impossible to understand. Shearer wanted to pull on a black-and-white-stripped shirt and run on to the St James' Park pitch. And, as he explained in the "Alan Shearer - Local Hero" documentary in 2006, that convinced him to sign for Newcastle. Shearer said:

"The lure of the black-and-white shirt No 9 shirt just proved too much. "Probably everyone outside of Newcastle will find that hard to understand but if you ask a Geordie who's been brought up in Newcastle, kicking a ball around in a black-and-white shirt all of his life, to go back and play for them, then they'll understand just as I did. "I stand by it 100%. I've got no regrets at all in my career."

Trophies are not everything - wearing the famous shirt of your beloved boyhood club can trump them.