Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale agreed to join Manchester United in the same transfer window, but the club refused to sanction the moves.<\/strong><\/p>\n This claim has been made by Patrice Evra, who said Sir Alex Ferguson<\/a> told him that Ronaldo\u2019s move to the club was nearly 100 per cent agreed just before the legendary Man United manager retired in 2013.<\/p>\n 3<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div> Evra also claimed that former Tottenham<\/a> and Real Madrid<\/a> winger Gareth Bale<\/a> was on his way to Old Trafford too, and that Ferguson was planning on staying at the club for a further TEN years.<\/p>\n Speaking on The Obi One Podcast<\/a> with former Chelsea<\/a> midfielder John Obi Mikel, he discussed what it was like when the Scotsman eventually left the Red Devils.<\/p>\n \u201cOne of the most saddest days, I didn\u2019t cry, I was in shock,\u201d Evra said.<\/p>\n \u201cThe reason why is because two weeks before, he brought me into his office [and said], \u2018Patrice look at those people, they think I’m going to retire, I\u2019m going to be [at the club for] another ten years, but we need to win more Champions Leagues.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cHe [Ferguson] said, \u2018Patrice, Cristiano Ronaldo<\/a> agreed 99 per cent to come back and Gareth Bale [too].\u201d<\/p>\n Ronaldo<\/span> signed for Real Madrid from Man United in the summer of 2009 for a then world record fee of \u00a380million.<\/p>\n He ended his first season with the Spanish giants trophyless, before going on to score 60 goals across all competitions the following season, which contributed to Madrid\u2019s first La Liga title in four years.<\/p>\n \u201cHe needed \u00a3200million and the club refused to give him those \u00a3200million,\u201d Evra added.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd now, they spent a billion on whatever\u2026 it was 2013, just before he retired, so that [is] why I remember when I got out of his office, I was like, ‘Cristiano is back, Gareth Bale, we\u2019re back in business’ after winning the title and everything.\u201d<\/p>\n 3<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div> 3<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div> Last year, Swiss-based research institute CIES Football Observatory<\/a> claimed Man United had spent around \u00a31.67bn on new players since 2014, while only recouping \u00a3481m from sales.<\/p>\n Evra\u2019s former teammate, Paul Pogba<\/a>, remains United\u2019s most expensive signing to date.<\/p>\n He surpassed Ronaldo\u2019s world record fee when he joined the Manchester club from Juventus<\/a> in 2016 for \u00a389 million.<\/p>\n Bale did leave Spurs but joined Real Madrid in an \u00a385 million deal. He went on to lift four Champions League trophies with Madrid, scoring more than 100 goals.<\/p>\n Man United are currently 12th in the Premier League <\/a>on seven points having won just two of their opening six games.<\/p>\n Manager Erik ten Hag is under increasing pressure if results do not improve for his side in the coming weeks.<\/p>\n But talkSPORT understands that Man United plan to stick with the Dutchman<\/a> for at least their next two games. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"Sir](\"https:\/\/talksport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2023\/12\/572af203-6c20-476f-9cda-b2a9a6b3ae0d.jpg?strip=all&w=960\")
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Bale](\"https:\/\/talksport.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2016\/07\/gettyimages-499897126.jpg?strip=all&w=700\")
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