presentation to persuade Bellingham and enlisting several club legends to help secure the deal. The Athletic reported that Solskjaer invited Ferguson to meet with Bellingham and his family during their visit to Carrington. However, it’s said that football director John Murtough cut short their interaction to give Bellingham a tour of the training facilities, leaving Ferguson ‘incandescent’, although Murtough denies interrupting their conversation. Reflecting on the meeting, Solskjaer shared with Stick to Football: “Jude, he was in the building. I was there, Sir Alex Ferguson was there, Bryan Robson and Eric Cantona were all there that day when he came to the club. “We all spoke to him and sold it as well as we could. He knew what he wanted, a certain amount of minutes in the first team. He was 17 at the time, and he was the most mature 17-year-old I’ve ever met he had it all planned out.”

Manchester United might be wondering what could have been as Jude Bellingham is ready to shine for Real Madrid in the Champions League final.

At Wembley on Saturday night when Bellingham meets Borussia Dortmund, the team that raised him following his exit from Birmingham City, he will be the main attraction. Should he triumph over his previous team, the England star will raise the most sought-after trophy in European club football and even confirm his ranking as a top Ballon d’Or candidate.

Having previously won the La Liga title with Real Madrid, Bellingham has grown significantly from his St Andrew’s first season at the juvenile age of sixteen. With some of the club’s sales pitch apparently irritating Sir Alex Ferguson, the midfielder notably rejected down a high-profile transfer to United in 2020.

Bellingham was clearly among the brightest talents in the game after establishing himself at Birmingham City, which attracted a lot of interest from top teams. Among those running the race were United, manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer making a presentation to convince Bellingham and recruiting many club icons to assist in securing the contract.

According to the Athletic, Solskjaer asked Ferguson to meet Bellingham and his family on their Carrington visit. Though Murtough denies stopping their talk, it is said that football director John Murtough broke off their encounter to provide Bellingham a tour of the training facilities, leaving Ferguson ‘incandescent’.

Thinking back on the conference, Solskjaer told Stick to Football: “Jude was in the building. present I was, Sir Alex Ferguson, Bryan Robson and Eric Cantona, all present that day when he arrived at the stadium.

“We marketed it as best we could and chatted with him as well. He understood exactly what he wanted, only a few minutes on the first team. At the time, he was seventeen and the most matured seventeen-year-old I have ever seen had it all figured out.”