Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Chronicle Live
Chronicle Live
Sport
Ciaran Kelly

Shearer reveals what he wouldn't 'put up with' at Manchester United after choosing Newcastle

Alan Shearer has revealed that he 'wouldn't have put up' with being rotated by Sir Alex Ferguson if he had joined Manchester United instead of Newcastle United.

The Magpies and the Red Devils famously battled it out 25 years ago after Shearer decided to leave Blackburn Rovers.

At one stage, Shearer had been 90% sure he was moving to Old Trafford but the legendary No 9 ultimately decided to come home and completed a world-record move to St James' Park.

Although Manchester United went on to win a plethora of trophies under Sir Alex Ferguson, including a historic treble in 1999, Shearer never regretted his decision.

Sir Alex moved on and brought in Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer that summer before adding Dwight Yorke to his squad two years later to complement Andy Cole.

Host Gary Lineker discussed those options with Shearer and fellow pundit Micah Richards on the Match of the Day: Top 10 podcast and here is a snippet from the latest episode.

GL: "Would you fancy that, though, as a player, being one of four?"

AS: "I was about to say. When he is chopping and changing, you've got to have someone who's going to be quite content to sit on the bench and play his part from there."

GL: "That ain't us!"

AS: "Nah, I wouldn't have liked that. I wouldn't have liked to have been a substitute. In fact, I wouldn't have put up with it. I would have..."

GL: "Gone to Newcastle?"

AS: "I'd have been banging on the door to be playing every single week. It's just the way I was brought up but the team spirit that they had, or they must have had, to get through what they did was staggering."

MR: "So, when (Man) United came in for you, what year would that have been?"

AS: "'96."

MR: "Who would have been up front for Man United then?"

AS: "Cantona."

GL: "Cantona and Shearer - that's a front two."

MR: "That would have been nice, wouldn't it?"

AS: "Well, they didn't exactly struggle by not signing me as I'm constantly reminded."

GL: "Three years later and they won the treble!"

AS: "Exactly."

We want to hear your thoughts on this story, so log in and leave your comment below

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.