David Ginola came close to joining Barcelona instead of Newcastle in 1995
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| Photo: PA |
Having led Paris Saint-Germain to the French title in the 1993/94 season, Ginola looked set to link up with his childhood hero Johan Cruyff at the Camp Nou.
However, Barcelona were unable to pay his wages and thus Ginola's move to the Spanish giants would have to be put on hold.
Speaking on Not Just Football, brought to you by Sky Bet, Ginola said:
I had a great time in Paris - we won the league, two French Cups, and I played in three semi-finals - it was a really good time.
At that time, I should have signed for Barcelona, and I met Johan Cruyff during the summer, and he said that I was his priority at Barcelona.
He had six foreigners at the club at the time and needed to get rid of [Gheorghe] Popescu, [Gheorghe] Hagi, and [Hristo] Stoichkov to put my name on the list for the chairman.
I wanted for that, and we arrived at the 14th of July, Independence Day in France, and he called me and said that he couldn't find any club to pay their wages, so it had to be for another time.
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The French winger eventually signed for the Toon for a reported fee of £2.5 million.
I was in Amsterdam and received a call from Terry McDermott and he asked whether I wanted to sign for them, and I said, "Okay."
An hour later, I get a phone call from [Arsenal vice-president] David Dein who asked whether I'd signed for Newcastle because they wanted to offer me a contract.
I said that I didn't sign anything, but I gave my word to Terry and Kevin Keagan, so it was done. Things happened very quickly.
It is safe to say the cultured Frenchman was in for a ride he didn't expect.
When I arrived at Newcastle, the first thing I thought was, "Am I in England?" The way that they were talking and all these things, for me it was like a discovery.
When I signed from PSG to Newcastle, I thought about the Premier League and England and thought it would be like this and that, but I discovered things like Baked Beans and Toast - things I'd never think about in Paris.
I was used to eating croissants and pain au chocolates and a nice glass of wine.
Ginola remained at Newcastle for two seasons, marking his 76 appearances with seven goals and 16 assists before moving to Tottenham Hotspur.
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