The 1999 treble win was arguably the most iconic and best moment in the entire history of Manchester United.
Sir Alex Ferguson was the first to do the seemingly impossible in the 1998/99 season. The Scotsman, his coaching staff and the first-team squad won the infamous treble – the Premier League, the Champions League and the FA Cup.
But it very nearly didn’t happen. The final feat in Barcelona was only won in the dying embers, thanks to two integral players.
Thank god he kept one of them, or the club’s history would’ve taken a different trajectory altogether.
Sir Alex Ferguson was integral to keeping Ole Gunnar Solskjaer
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer revealed a lot about his time at Manchester United in a recent interview.
The Manchester United legend sat down with Gary Neville, Roy Keane, Ian Wright, Jamie Carragher and Jill Scott on the Stick to Football podcast.
Wright asked Ole about a move that nearly formulated in 1998, where Tottenham Hotspur were very keen in securing his services. He revealed it was very nearly done, but his manager said he was going nowhere.
“I have a fax, a signed fax between Alan Sugar and Martin Edwards,” Ole begins. “£5.5m. It was all agreed. It was the summer of ’98. And I said no.
“The gaffer actually asked me to stay. He said ‘You’re not gonna be a first choice, but you’ll play enough’.”
Solksjaer continued: “He said to me, don’t tell anyone I’ve said this to you because they needed the money apparently. But after when they won the treble, I thought – yeah I can say that now.”
Ole Gunnar Solksjaer then won him the treble…
In the 1999 Champions League final, Manchester United faced Bayern Munich. In injury time, trailing 1-0, United launched a desperate attack.
David Beckham‘s corner found Teddy Sheringham who equalized in the 91st minute. Moments later, another corner, this time from Ryan Giggs, was flicked on by Sheringham and met by Solskjaer’s outstretched leg, redirecting the ball into the net in the 93rd minute.
The goal sealed a miraculous comeback, with the Red Devils winning 2-1. Solskjaer’s instinctive finish etched his name in Old Trafford and football folklore, securing the historic treble and eternally remembered as the defining moment of the Norwegian’s career.
£5.5m they were going to let him go for? Paid back in full – and then some.