Paul Ince unveils truth behind Liverpool move
Former Premier league legend Paul Ince was very open about the fact that he moved to Liverpool by necessity rather than choice, claiming Manchester United’s unwillingness to keep him.
The midfield player, who was known for his competitive play at Old Trafford between 1989 and 1995, had a falling out with manager Sir Alex Ferguson at the time, which led to his £7.5 million move to Inter Milan in 1995.
When Ince returned to England in 1997, he was 29 years old and was playing for the Liverpool, his old rivals.
“I have always kind of felt – and I have said this time and time again – it is no disrespect to both teams but I’d have never have gone to Liverpool straight from Manchester United or from Liverpool straight to Manchester United. That is a cardinal sin,” he told talkSPORT.
He even explained that United waived the right to re-sign him before completing his move to Liverpool.
“When I left to go to Inter Milan, I didn’t want to leave Manchester United. When I came back from Inter Milan, Man United had first refusal on me. I could have easily gone back to Manchester United – they turned down that decision to take me back.
“Whether I would have gone back I don’t know, but all I know is I had two years at Inter, another three years left on my contract, obviously the family situation was difficult so we came back.
“Peter Robinson came over from Liverpool, we sat down and had some lunch, we agreed that was the way I was going to go. I love the North West. I’d spent six or seven years there with United, knew Jamie Redknapp, Robbie Fowler, David James, so it was easy to settle in.”
Despite the perception of a controversial transfer, Ince explained that his decision to move to Anfield was not a breach of loyalty but rather United’s lack of interest.
Ince scored 17 goals in 81 games while he was a player for Liverpool, including an iconic equalizer against United in 1999.
He played with a lot of passion on the field, but ultimately left for Middlesbrough after falling out with manager Gerard Houllier.
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