Liverpool icon Steven Gerrard's blunt reply to Sir Alex Ferguson's Man United transfer request

Gary Neville has confessed that he tried to convince Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard to sign for Manchester United.

Gerrard became an all-time great for the Reds during his 17-year stint with the club, making a total of 710 appearances and most notably leading Liverpool to Champions League glory. Before spending a brief spell at LA Galaxy towards the end of his playing career, Gerrard's love for the Reds was clear for all to see whenever he was on the pitch.

However, as one of the best midfielders in world football in his heyday, there were attempts to prise Gerrard from Liverpool’s grasp. Chelsea arguably came closest under Jose Mourinho, but Manchester United legend Gary Neville has recalled how Sir Alex Ferguson tasked him with persuading Gerrard to join Liverpool’s bitter rivals.

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“Stevie [Steven Gerrard] told this in his book, where I went into his room with England and asked him to sign for Manchester United,” he said on the Stick to Football podcast, sponsored by Sky Bet. “I was meeting up with England for the Euros, and he [Sir Alex Ferguson] rang me and said it’s ambitious, but his words were, ‘Tell him I’ll go and fetch him, and I’ll walk him back down the East Lancs’.

“I went to see Stevie, and he quite categorically [rejected it] pretty quickly. He said he would never get out of Liverpool and his family would never get out of Liverpool.”

It is unthinkable to imagine the iconic Reds skipper playing for Man United but it was not the only time that Ferguson had attempted to lure him to Old Trafford. Gerrard had previously turned down the club as a teenager and did so for a