FORMER England midfielder Paul Ince has recalled the time he almost missed out on a move to Manchester United after failing his medical.
Ince was poised for a move to Old Trafford following West Ham‘s relegation to the second division in 1989.
However, the transfer almost fell through at the last minute.
And to make matters worse, an administrative error saw him go from hero to zero in the eyes of West Ham fans.
After holding positive talks with Sir Alex Ferguson, Ince posed in a Man Utd shirt in preparation for his official unveiling.
But following some confusion the image was prematurely published in the Daily Express – while he was still under contract at West Ham.
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Discussing the fallout during an interview with talkSPORT, Ince said: “I did that (posing in the Man Utd shirt) in good faith, thinking once the deal was done, it could go in the papers.
“It was in one of the media libraries when the papers were searching for me in a West Ham shirt!
“At that age, you are governed by your agent. My agent told me the deal would go through before I got back – so you do it.
“I regret the consequences of it. When I came back to West Ham, we played Swindon away. Half the fans were singing they wanted me to stay, half were singing ‘get rid’.
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“It made me wonder whether I wanted to stay. Then it got hostile and my wife was getting pelters in the stands. I decided to move on. There comes a point when enough is enough.
“I was training and Ronnie Boyce said there was someone waiting for me at the hotel. It was like the headmaster wanting to see you at school.
“Boyce drives me to the hotel and Sir Alex Ferguson is sat there. He was great. As a 19-year-old, cocky, West Ham kid – I didn’t know the greatness of the man until I played with him.
“But he was sat there, legs crossed, with a saucer, a spoon on the side… I thought, ‘Who’s this cowboy?'”
Ince then went on to reveal that he failed his medical and subsequently had to return to West Ham, where he continued to receive abuse from fans.
He added: “That made it ten-times worse. I thought, ‘Oh my God, I’ve got to go back to West Ham now’.
“I was in tears, my wife was in tears. We agreed a six-year deal and I failed the medical.
“I had to sit in the stands at West Ham and I kept getting caned.
“Then I got a phone call from Sir Alex Ferguson and he said, ‘We don’t care if you’ve got a little problem with your groins. We’re making this happen’. He kept his word.”
Ince went on to win seven major trophies with the Red Devils, including two Premier League titles and two FA Cups during his six-year spell at Old Trafford.
He then joined Inter Milan in a £7.5million transfer in 1995.
But after two years at the San Siro, he returned to England.
Man Utd turned down the chance to re-sign him, so the midfielder joined their bitter rivals Liverpool instead.
Ince told talkSPORT: “I have always kind of felt – and I have said this time and time again – it is no disrespect to both teams but I’d have never have gone to Liverpool straight from Manchester United or from Liverpool straight to Manchester United. That is a cardinal sin.
“When I left to go to Inter Milan, I didn’t want to leave Manchester United.
“When I came back from Inter Milan, Man United had first refusal on me. I could have easily gone back to Manchester United – they turned down that decision to take me back.
“Whether I would have gone back I don’t know, but all I know is I had two years at Inter, another three years left on my contract, obviously the family situation was difficult so we came back.”
Ince also played for Middlesbrough, Wolves, Swindon and Macclesfield before retiring in 2007.
He is now a football manager and most recently spent a year with Reading before being sacked in April.
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Emillia Hawkins
