Sir Alex Ferguson made me want to join Manchester United - I couldn't believe what he did

Andreas Pereira has revealed how Sir Alex Ferguson helped Manchester United sign the Brazilian in 2012 from PSV Eindhoven when many clubs were showing interest.

The 28-year-old, now at Fulham, moved to PSV from Belgian side Lommel United at nine. After competing in the Manchester United Premier Cup with the Dutch giants, Pereira became wanted by several big clubs in England.

Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool were all said to be monitoring the Brazilian but the Reds landed the wonderkid. Pereira managed 75 games for United with the majority of his time spent out on loan with Granada, Valencia, Lazio and Flamengo.

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He left the club permanently in the summer of 2022 with a move to Fulham. He has already made more appearances for Marco Silva's side than he did at Old Trafford, scoring eight times and assisting a further 15.

Looking back at his move from PSV to United, Pereira explained how Ferguson was so instrumental in his decision. “A scout, Geoff Watson, contacted my Dad and said [United] are interested in me," he told Vibe with Five.

"At the time, I had interest from a few other clubs in Europe but I was always a fan of United and Ronaldo. I wanted to go to United and when it happened, it was fast. We finished the [Manchester United Premier Cup] and they had already started speaking to my Dad about coming to visit.

“I remember walking in Carrington, thinking it’s an amazing complex and I want to come here. Then they said, ‘Someone wants to meet you’, and it was Fergie.

“I remember him standing in front of us and I couldn’t believe it. For the first time, I saw my Dad didn’t know what to do.

“[Ferguson] said something and at first I didn’t understand it because his English was not really [easy to understand]. After that, he said ‘There’s always room for a Brazilian in my team’. That stayed with me in my head. I didn’t even want to go back home! I wanted to stay there straight away.”