Manchester United defender Mikael Silvestre was last night on the verge of an astonishing move to bitter rivals Arsenal.
The 31-year-old France international had appeared to be on his way to Manchester City or Sunderland. But Sportsmail can reveal that Arsenal came in with a late offer to tempt Silvestre into one of the summer’s most unexpected transfers.
Mikael Silvestre
Sources close to the player revealed last night that the 31-year-old had been won over by Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger, one of his home country’s most revered coaches, and the promise of Champions League football at the Emirates.
Arsenal will expect to pay United around £750,000 for a player who moved to Old Trafford from Inter Milan in the 1998-99 season and will offer him £50,000-a-week.
What makes the deal so remarkable is that Wenger and his bitter rival, United manager Sir Alex Ferguson, have never before traded players in the 12 years they have been in opposition in the Premier League.
The two men have often been in competition for the same player from overseas and have at times coveted members of each other’s squads. Wenger, for example, considered a move for David Beckham when he left United in 2003 and Ferguson always wanted former Gunners captain Patrick Vieira. But no deal between the two men has ever been close to coming off.
Silvestre, who has made 361 appearances for United in all competitions, was thought to be holding out for a testimonial next year when he turned down summer approaches from Bordeaux and Paris Saint-Germain in his homeland.
It was also thought that his family wanted to remain in the north-west.
But it appears the opportunity to join another top English club, especially one with such a strong French influence, proved too hard to resist.
Wenger wants to integrate Silvestre into a defensive unit that already contains Frenchmen Gael Clichy and William Gallas. The arrival of Silvestre — if the transfer goes through — would also probably spell the end for Arsenal’s unreliable Switzerland centre back Philippe Senderos.
no,this cant be true
