Rio Ferdinand had a great football career with Manchester United and it comes to no surprise that other teams had him on their radar. That list includes Barcelona which, according to him, tried to pry him away from the Red Devils back in 2008. However, it never came to fruition since the timing was a bit off.
Ferdinand shared with BT Sport that they were playing Barca at the time. They had just won the match but feelers were already being sent before that. In the tunnel, the English center-back was approached by then-manager Frank Riijkard and he listened. However, the timing was a bit off with United doing pretty well that season.
"It came close. There were discussions with my agent, Barca had touched base. I'd spoken to Riijkard, not about going there but he made his feelings known," Ferdinand said.
The only tempting aspect of that was Ferdinand was pondering on playing abroad. It was one of the things he was contemplating at that time. But with the success he was having with United, why leave the team?
"The problem with me going abroad, I always said I definitely wanted to go abroad and play, but the only thing that would ever have stopped me was if I was successful on home shores and I was lucky and fortunate to find a great club in Manchester United where it was going to be almost impossible for me to leave," Ferdinand explained.
Shunning the offer, the Red Devils went on to become European champions. He noted that Barcelona already had Lionel Messi and Xavier Hernandez at that time but was far from the best footballers they are right now. His potential addition could have resulted in something big until Barca opted to change managers.
Riikjkard was replaced during the 2008-09 season by Pep Guardiola. That move allowed Barca to win the Champions League title, ironically over Manchester United. From that time on, the Catalans have improved immensely and became one of United's chief rivals, Goal.com reported.
Also, it is worth noting that a move out of United to Barca would have not worked for Ferdinand. It was Riikkard who had plans for the center-back and Guardiola may have had other plans (and players) in mind. It would have worked against Ferdinand, probably deny him of the success he has had in the football world. All that behind, his 12-year stint has been memorable and something he would gleefully look back when he gets the chance.
