David O’Learly will always be remembered at Leeds United for the glorious run to the Champions League semi-finals and building one of the top teams Elland Road has seen in decades.
The money spent during the O’Leary era at Leeds finally came back to bite the club, leading to a financial meltdown, player sales, and eventual relegation from the Premier League.
However, for a brief moment, Leeds had one of the top teams in England and even made a dent in European football, reaching the semi-finals of the Champions League.
Leeds spent big money on certain players during that era. However, O’Leary has revealed that he would not have signed one of those stars if he had known how much money he would end up costing.
David O’Leary conceded that he would not have signed Rio Ferdinand
Leeds broke a British transfer record to sign Rio Ferdinand from West Ham for a deal worth £18m in 2000, and he was David O’Leary’s top target. He became the most expensive defender in world football.
The former Leeds boss revealed that the club needed to sign a centre-back, as Lucas Radebe was struggling with injuries, and Ferdinand was his top choice.
However, he didn’t think the then West Ham youngster would cost more than £10m.
He conceded that had Leeds chief Peter Ridsdale informed him earlier that Ferdinand would cost a British transfer record fee, he would not have signed him.
O’Leary said on The Overlap, “Leeds said to me, David, at centre-half, we have got the Lucas thing, and we need three proposals from you.
“I said, Rio Ferdinand, in my opinion.
“They came back to me and said, he takes a lot of chances.
“He takes a lot of chances because he is so good on the ball. Put him in a back four, his quickness and the build, so there is a hell of a lot about him.
“How much would he cost? I said he’d cost around £10m.
“My Dad was having this big operation in Dublin, and my phone was off on a Friday.
“Got out of the hospital on Sunday, rang Peter Ridsdale immediately, and he said, David, we have completed a deal for Rio Ferdinand. I said how much, and it was £18m.
“If he came back to me earlier that day and said, David, it’s £18m, I would not have done it.”
He broke more transfer records later
Ferdinand spent two years at Leeds and replaced Radebe as club captain in 2001. However, he would never be remembered fondly at Elland Road.
He committed the ultimate sin when he left Leeds to join their hated rivals, Manchester United, where he became one of the best centre-backs in the world.
Manchester United paid a British record transfer fee of £30m, and Ferdinand became the world’s most expensive defender for the second time in his career.
He spent 12 years at Manchester United, winning six Premier League titles and a Champions League, amongst other honours.
