When Manchester United signed Andrei Kanchelskis in March 1991 for £650,000, not much was known about the Russian, although the legendary Sir Alex Ferguson had watched a video of him playing for Russia's U21s and the transfer was deemed a calculated risk.
Interestingly, though, upon his arrival from Shakhtar, Kanchelskis explained he didn't know which Manchester club he was joining. "I went to buy some, but they were terrible. They didn’t really fit properly. I played really badly in a friendly, but fortunately, they still gave me a contract." "I’d played for Dynamo Kyiv under Valeriy Lobanovskyi – one of the best coaches around – and he liked playing 4-4-2 with two wingers, just like Ferguson."
The late George Scanlan played an important role in helping Ferguson convey his message to Kanchelskis and the great Eric Cantona - the skilled interpreter was even permitted to sit on the Reds' bench on matchday. As it happened, Ferguson's confidence wasn't misplaced and United ended their 26-year wait for the league title in the 1992/1993 season, although Kanchelskis wasn't used as frequently, facing competition from Ryan Giggs and Lee Sharpe in the wide areas.
"I didn’t know his dad was a lorry driver as mine had been. He had taken me to his house and to Chester races and to a Paul Simon concert," Kanchelskis said to the The42. Although it was a blatant handball, Kevin Keegan on commentary duties was appalled at the decision to send Kanchelskis off. The Reds dominated their rivals at Old Trafford on that occasion, recording an emphatic 5-0 win and Kanchelskis stole the show.
Away from the pitch, the noise surrounding Kanchelskis was becoming increasingly concerning and matters had come to a head two months before that history-making win against City, as Kanchelskis' agent had visited Ferguson in August 1994. One of Arsenal's most successful managers, George Graham, was embroiled in a bung scandal prior to that incident, and with that episode fresh in the memory, Ferguson took extreme measures to ensure he also wasn't caught up in something illegal.
But, was the money intended as a sweetener to look favourably on any future deals regarding Kanchelskis, or as thanks for a deal that would never have been agreed had Ferguson been involved and known about the clause?
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