David Hirst rues the fact he didn’t bang on the manager’s door to force through a move to Manchester United.
While the forward was with Sheffield Wednesday, Manchester United missed out on acquiring Southampton striker Alan Shearer in 1992, redirecting their focus to the standout player at Hillsborough.
3
Alex Ferguson, then the manager, attempted to secure Hirst’s signature six different times, even presenting a British record offer of £4.5 million for the England forward. However, this bid was declined by Trevor Francis, who was Sheffield Wednesday’s manager at the time.
United were at the start of their dominance over the Premier League and ended up moving on to sign Eric Cantona from Leeds United instead.
The fact United were signing a player from fierce rivals Leeds easier, and for £1.2m, is a shock in itself.
Hirst, who scored 128 goals in 358 games for Wednesday, never got the opportunity to move to Old Trafford again, which is something he regrets.
Hirst shared in a November 2015 interview with the Daily Mail, “I had been in discussions with Alex Ferguson for a couple of weeks and was set to join Man United.”
“A fax was sent with an offer of £4.5million and I was expecting Trevor to say: ‘Man United, £4.5m, away you go’. But he said, ‘I’m not selling you’.
“One thing I never did in my career was knock on the manager’s door because I’m not in the team or I want more money. If you’re not happy with the contract, don’t sign it.
“If you’re not in the team, go out on the training ground and do your best. It’s no good knocking on the door telling him what a good player you are if you’ve not been doing it. I never had a problem with that.
“Sitting here now, I should’ve banged the door down. It’s orchestrated [nowadays] and if Man United are interested your agent will get you there by hook or by crook.
“Financially, it wouldn’t have been much different. We weren’t on £50,000 a week then. We were all on pretty much the same.
3
“I was playing for Sheffield Wednesday, third in the league, in Europe, cup finals, good wages, but a Man United player comes with a different tag. It is the one thing I regret.”
Francis gave his version of events in is autobiography ‘One In A Million’, saying: “Manchester United were following David for a while when Alex Ferguson was manager and I can still hear Alex now on my car phone totally exasperated with me because he had put in two offers which I had knocked back.
“He then offered £4m and with the 100 per cent backing of the board I told him we were not interested in doing anything with David Hirst.
“I refused £4m and Alex bellowed down the phone in his Scottish accent, ‘Do you realise this is Manchester United Football Club and you are stopping a player from going to Man United?’
“I told him that Sheffield Wednesday were a big club, not as big as Man United, and that I was looking to continue the improvements I was making and David Hirst was a big part of my plans.
“I stuck to my guns but I will never forget Alex Ferguson telling me what he thought of me!
“I was on the M1 motorway and he was not aware that Helen [Francis’ wife] was in the car listening to him on the speaker phone.
“If she had been a referee he would undoubtedly have been given a red card for his bad language!”
3
Hirst stayed at Sheffield Wednesday until 1997 before joining Southampton for £2m.
Cantona, however, helped United to their first league title in 26 years in what was the first ever Premier League season. “I played with him for two full seasons and we won a title both times, the first of them almost single-handedly down to him,” Gary Neville, who broke into the senior side during the Cantona era, has previously said.
“It was his mere presence and his ability to make and score goals,” Fergie observed of his bargain signing.
He left in 1997 as a legend whose name still appears in the stands today thanks to his charismatic personality, brilliance on the ball and 82 goals in 185 appearances for the club.
The Owls, though, have endured tough times, being relegated from the Premier League in 2000.
They have recently emerged from their third stint in League One since those heady days and begin the 2024/25 Championship campaign against Plymouth, who are managed by one of United’s greatest ever players in Wayne Rooney.
The game is live on talkSPORT at 4pm on 11 August
