Roy Keane And Gary Neville Negotiated A Contract With Sir Alex Ferguson For Manchester United Youngster

Roy Keane and Gary Neville negotiated a contract withSir Alex Ferguson on the behalf of former Manchester United youngster David Jones.

Jones was coming through the youth ranks at United and on the verge of signing his first professional contract. However, he had no one representing him and so Keane and Neville both stepped in to help him out.

They ended up going through all the details with Ferguson and Jones was so appreciative that he handed the pair a bottle of wine to express his thanks.

Image: PA

"I didn't have an agent back then and this is when Roy Keane and Gary Neville pulled me aside after training one day and offered to help with the contract," Jones, told the Daily Mail.

"They were both fantastic. We sat down in the players' lounge and they went through everything with me. Even that was an experience to learn from!

"They wanted to make sure I was getting a fair deal for where I was at in my career and it was actually Roy and Gary who negotiated the contract with the manager on my behalf."

"After I'd signed I bought them both a bottle of wine as a thank you. The cheapest commission I've ever had to pay in my whole career."

Jones made four appearances for United in total and was sent out on loan to Preston North End, Eredivisie outfit NEC Nijmegen and Derby County before signing for the latter permanently.

He then went on to turn out for Wolverhampton Wanderers, Wigan Athletic, Blackburn Rovers, Burnley, Sheffield Wednesday and Oldham Athletic.

Image: PA

But he looks back on the stint at United fondly and deems it to have played a key part in his development.

"At the time, Manchester United were without doubt the biggest club in the world and every player wanted to play for them and for Sir Alex Ferguson," Jones added.

"I was 19 and had been training with the first team for about six months when the club offered me a new contract.

"It was a great place to start my career. I got a fantastic insight into what makes a top player."

Topics: Football News, Football, Manchester United, Roy Keane

Josh Lawless

Josh is a sports journalist who specialises in football and wrestling. He has been published by Curzon Ashton FC, Late Tackle, Manchester City FC, The Mirror, Read Man City and Manchester Evening News. He provides coverage of professional wrestling and has interviewed some of the biggest names in the field - including the first UK interview with The Hardy Boyz after their return to WWE. He has never sported a pair of Lonsdale Slip-ons, contrary to reports.

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