Stam the victim of Ferguson vendetta
Tuesday 4th December 2001
Lazio defender Jaap Stam has claimed he was "ruthlessly brushed aside" by Sir Alex Ferguson, whom he accused of putting Manchester United's business before the team in his sale.
"Everything revolves around one thing – money. Honesty is nowhere in sight," said the Dutchman.
Stam's comments appear in the updated version of his autobiography, the intial publication of which many believe caused Stam to be sold to Lazio.
And the Dutchman is convinced that is the case. He said: "Two weeks after the book was published, my wonderful time at a club I really loved had come to an abrupt end. I was having a fantastic time at United, but was pushed aside just like that.
"Was it just the book, or did they need the money now that they already had a replacement who was - in their eyes - of similar quality? I really do not know. What I do know is that three perfect years had been wiped out and that Ferguson had lost all faith in me.
"Of course I could have played hardball and have refused to co-operate. But then I would have had to see out the rest of my four-year contract on the bench, hoping for a substitution.
"My situation proved that if a club wants to get rid of you, you are powerless. The only thing you can do is watch while the club sells you like a piece of cattle.
"These are the moments you suddenly realise what a small, narrow-minded business this really is. Everything revolves around one thing - money. It's that simple. You think you're at a fantastic club with decent people and a nice atmosphere, a club you would never want to leave. But when push comes to shove, you are ruthlessly brushed aside. Honesty is nowhere in sight, contracts have no meaning.
"There were moments I wished I had never written this book. Just before we departed for our training camp for the tough away game at Aston Villa, I therefore approached Ferguson for a talk.
"He was on the phone when I entered his little office at the training ground and he was startled when he saw me. Minutes later he told me that United had put me on the transfer list and that they had even already accepted a bid from a foreign club. I could not believe my ears.
"I had been with United for three years and, apart from the four months I had been out with injury and a few suspensions, I had been in the first team for almost every game. I had also been voted the best defender in Europe twice.
"Six months earlier Ferguson had named me in his United team of the Century. I had never had a complaint and now I could do nothing right. While I looked at him with disbelief, he said I'd never fully recovered from my injury to the Achilles' tendon.
"He said he was very sorry, but that he could no longer use my services. He wanted to move on with Wes Brown, the big talent in the United defence. And alongside Brown he had signed an experienced hand in Laurent Blanc. The humiliation could not have been bigger. At 29, I had been an automatic choice in both United and the Dutch national side, and now I was considered too inexperienced and pushed aside for a 35-year-old Frenchman."
"The fact that I still had a contract until 2005 was suddenly of no importance whatsoever, because the club clearly wanted to get rid of me. Without me knowing anything about it, they had already sold me.
"Two weeks after the book was published, my wonderful time at a club I really loved had come to an abrupt end. I was having a fantastic time at United, but was pushed aside just like that."
Since his sale, Stam put in some impressive performances for Lazio before failing two drugs tests for nandrolone. He is currently banned from playing.
onefootball.com
Tuesday 4th December 2001
Lazio defender Jaap Stam has claimed he was "ruthlessly brushed aside" by Sir Alex Ferguson, whom he accused of putting Manchester United's business before the team in his sale.
"Everything revolves around one thing – money. Honesty is nowhere in sight," said the Dutchman.
Stam's comments appear in the updated version of his autobiography, the intial publication of which many believe caused Stam to be sold to Lazio.
And the Dutchman is convinced that is the case. He said: "Two weeks after the book was published, my wonderful time at a club I really loved had come to an abrupt end. I was having a fantastic time at United, but was pushed aside just like that.
"Was it just the book, or did they need the money now that they already had a replacement who was - in their eyes - of similar quality? I really do not know. What I do know is that three perfect years had been wiped out and that Ferguson had lost all faith in me.
"Of course I could have played hardball and have refused to co-operate. But then I would have had to see out the rest of my four-year contract on the bench, hoping for a substitution.
"My situation proved that if a club wants to get rid of you, you are powerless. The only thing you can do is watch while the club sells you like a piece of cattle.
"These are the moments you suddenly realise what a small, narrow-minded business this really is. Everything revolves around one thing - money. It's that simple. You think you're at a fantastic club with decent people and a nice atmosphere, a club you would never want to leave. But when push comes to shove, you are ruthlessly brushed aside. Honesty is nowhere in sight, contracts have no meaning.
"There were moments I wished I had never written this book. Just before we departed for our training camp for the tough away game at Aston Villa, I therefore approached Ferguson for a talk.
"He was on the phone when I entered his little office at the training ground and he was startled when he saw me. Minutes later he told me that United had put me on the transfer list and that they had even already accepted a bid from a foreign club. I could not believe my ears.
"I had been with United for three years and, apart from the four months I had been out with injury and a few suspensions, I had been in the first team for almost every game. I had also been voted the best defender in Europe twice.
"Six months earlier Ferguson had named me in his United team of the Century. I had never had a complaint and now I could do nothing right. While I looked at him with disbelief, he said I'd never fully recovered from my injury to the Achilles' tendon.
"He said he was very sorry, but that he could no longer use my services. He wanted to move on with Wes Brown, the big talent in the United defence. And alongside Brown he had signed an experienced hand in Laurent Blanc. The humiliation could not have been bigger. At 29, I had been an automatic choice in both United and the Dutch national side, and now I was considered too inexperienced and pushed aside for a 35-year-old Frenchman."
"The fact that I still had a contract until 2005 was suddenly of no importance whatsoever, because the club clearly wanted to get rid of me. Without me knowing anything about it, they had already sold me.
"Two weeks after the book was published, my wonderful time at a club I really loved had come to an abrupt end. I was having a fantastic time at United, but was pushed aside just like that."
Since his sale, Stam put in some impressive performances for Lazio before failing two drugs tests for nandrolone. He is currently banned from playing.
onefootball.com
