Sir Alex Ferguson name-drops seven superstars he almost signed for Manchester United

Fergie has some seriously big names on his "the ones who got away" list.

Although Sir Alex Ferguson brought some during his two and a half decade reign at Manchester United, there was some even bigger stars he missed out on. The Times today have collated seven stories of failed signings from Fergie's new book, Leading, featuring quotes from the former United boss on why he missed out on the stars. The Brazilian OG (Original Gangster) Ronaldo almost came to Old Trafford as an 18-year-old but after failing to get a work visa, he opted to join PSV Eindhoven instead. Remarkably, Thomas Muller was on Manchester United's radar when he was just 10 years old target, until he committed his future to Bayern Munich. Fergie was also eyeing up Petr Cech and Didier Drogba before they became stars for rivals Chelsea.