
Sport
Share
Published 15:46 19 Oct 2016 BST
Explore more on these topics:
"I thought that was weird, but basically he said: '(Alex) Ferguson thinks it's an honour to play for the club, therefore he's only offering £3m.' I think they were kind of only doing the deal because I was hot property at the time – not because he genuinely wanted me. "At United they were saying: 'We'll develop you and you've got all these star players to train with.' But I didn't want that. I wanted to be playing."Jenas would go on to play over 150 times for Newcastle, winning the PFA Young Player of the Year in 2003, before joining Tottenham Hotspur in 2005. He also revealed how he dodged a bullet by choosing Newcastle over Leeds United, who would go into financial meltdown and get relegated from the Premier League in 2004.
"Bobby (Robson, the then Newcastle manager) didn't stop ringing my phone – and David O'Leary was ringing me. So it was kind of like, which way do I go? "Leeds were Champions League at the time, they had (Rio) Ferdinand, (Robbie) Keane, (Robbie) Fowler and so on – and it was closer to home. But my agent said: 'You can't go to Leeds. It's going to fall apart. I promise you it's not good there.'
"Once I'd got to St James' Park, the minute I pulled up to the stadium, I'd decided I wasn't going anywhere else. It felt like the right place to be – and Bobby (Robson) just sold it to me by making sure I knew I was going to be playing. I could have said no, gone to United and you might never have seen me." "I might have gone into the reserves, got paid loads of good money and just been comfortable. I might not have been able to break through into that unbelievable United team of [Roy] Keane, [Nicky] Butt and [Paul] Scholes. I could have just gone missing."In fairness to Jenas, who retired from football earlier this year following a persistent knee-injury, he probably made the right choice. Catch up with the latest episode of Football Friday Live
World Cup 2026 prize money: The staggering amount the winners can earn revealed
If it’s coming home, here’s how much England will get Football fans need to gear up and stay up-to-date with the World Cup, as there are just a few days remaining for the much-awaited tournament. The World Cup this year is set to begin on June 11, 2026, and will be hosted across the USA, […]
Sport
13h
The best England and Scotland shirts to buy before World Cup 2026 kicks off
Get ready for the World Cup 2026 The FIFA World Cup 2026 kicks off on 11 June and this is where you can buy the official – and unofficial – shirts for England, Scotland and more. Scotland’s first match will take place at 1am on 14 June, while England kick off their World Cup campaign […]
Sport
13h
Man City threaten legal action after Real Madrid Erling Haaland transfer claim
Sport