Sol Campbell established himself as an Arsenal legend after controversially arriving at the club.
The defender rejected a new deal from boyhood club Tottenham in 2001 to sign for the Lillywhites’ North London rivals on a free transfer.
Winning two league titles at Highbury, including being one of the key figures in the 2003/04 Invincibles season under Arsene Wenger, his success in N5 certainly will have haunted Spurs fans.
Campbell continues to troll Tottenham in his post-retirement career, but this all could’ve been very different had he opted for a move elsewhere, rather than completing one of the most contentious transfers of all time.
Sol Campbell reveals the five clubs that tried to sign him throughout his career
Lifting the League Cup as Spurs captain in 1999, Campbell was on course to become a legend at White Hart Lane, but instead chose to wind his contract down and join Arsenal on a free transfer two years after winning this silverware.
Before this, however, the Englishman almost joined Manchester United earlier in his career.
Speaking on the Stick to Football podcast, Campbell revealed that the Red Devils came in for him when he was 21.
“I remember I was having an afternoon nap and a phone call came through and asked if I fancied United,” Campbell said.
“I was 21 then and obviously didn’t go any further because he blocked it… [Alan] Sugar. Didn’t go any further.”
Remaining at Tottenham for another four years after this, he’d eventually receive a number of offers from clubs throughout Europe as his contract ran towards its expiry date.
Campbell revealed that Bayern Munich, Liverpool, Inter Milan and Barcelona all displayed interest in him before he decided to ply his trade in Islington.
“I think Bayern came in really early but you don’t know,” he said.
“No not then [Man United coming in for an offer]… Liverpool came down but I can’t remember who the manager was… Going to Inter, went over and had a chat.
“Then Barcelona at the end but you just don’t know, it’s all kind of propaganda.”
Eventually joining the Gunners, Campbell would go on to make 197 appearances under Wenger, winning six trophies in the process.
Sol Campbell on where Arsenal’s Invincibles rank amongst other teams
Forming an exceptional partnership with Kolo Toure at the heart of Arsenal’s defence, the duo were the cornerstone of the Gunners’ success in the 2003/04 season.
Campbell featured in 35 of the 38 Premier League games that the North Londoners didn’t lose, putting himself into the pantheon of all-time greats at the club.
Rio Ferdinand believes Campbell was better than William Saliba is now, and given the side went unbeaten for an entire campaign, it doesn’t seem an unreasonable suggestion.
Speaking on where the Invincibles rank in comparison to other great club teams, Campbell said: “I think when you look at it, and I think you look at the achievement of going a whole season, 49 games as well… I think for me, beating a record that stood for over 100 years.
“It’s still an over 100 year old record, there was a lot of football that had been played so it’s definitely up there as one of the best achievements.
“When you look across the world there’s, I don’t know, 30, 40 teams that have done it. But to kind of be the first [in the Premier League] it’s an incredible achievement.”
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