Veron: I will never regret joining Manchester United, I wish I had been there longer

Many good players have not been able to achieve good results since coming to the Premier League, and Veron is perhaps the most famous example.

When Veron came to Manchester United in 2001, he was considered one of the best midfielders in the world. Sir Alex Ferguson signed him for £28.1m, which set the then Premier League record, and he was sure the former Lazio midfielder would be The Old Trafford superstar.

Although Veron did win the Premier League title in Manchester, it was still considered a failure by the British media and was sold to Chelsea at a low price two years later. However, he insisted he had no regrets about joining the Red Devils.

"No, never," Veron said in an interview with 442. "I signed for Manchester United because I have a passport issue in Italy and I think changing the landscape is good for my thinking. To be honest, I'm pessimistic about playing in the UK and I imagine life there would be a big departure from the way I used to live. But I found an extraordinary club. You'd be hard-pressed to find a well-organized club with so many people willing to help. ”

"What happened to me changed the way I thought about England. I spent two years in Manchester and won the Premier League title, and I'm still in touch with a few people I meet: York, Scholes, Ferdinand, Fowjong, Wes Brown, and O'Shea. I'll meet the Neville brothers at some point. ”

In Manchester, Veron joined the midfielders already with Beckham, Scholes, Keane and Giggs. The competition is fierce and Veron believes that a different approach to physical training than in the past has also made it difficult for him to adapt to the Premier League.

"I know that in england the fans expect a lot from me and I did that, let me be clear," he said. "Maybe it's about the role of the player, if the club really needs me, then there's already a good option there. In order for things to work for me, that side had to change. ”

"If there's one thing that works against me, I'd say physical conditioning. I'm used to the Italian way, which is the key to our game, but during that time in England, the physical confrontation was like playing a game. I'm not used to playing before I'm nervously prepared, and it's not ideal for me in the long run. As we played more games, my performance became less than ideal and my form went up and down. In Italy, I managed to have a more stable time, but I knew that my time in the Premier League was not the best. ”

Veron scored 11 goals and 11 assists in 82 appearances for Manchester United before continuing to play for Chelsea, Inter and The University of La Plata before ending his career.

(Editor: Yao Fan)