Sir Alex Ferguson Had Ian Wright Crying With Laughter After Being Told: 'You Should've Signed Me'

Sir Alex Ferguson told Ian Wright he was 'too f**king dear' when asked why he never tried to sign him for Manchester United.

Wright burst onto the scene with Crystal Palace in 1990 before sealing a then club record £2.5 million transfer to boyhood side Arsenal.

One game in particular put Wright on Arsenal's radar. The former England international scored twice off the bench against United in the 1990 FA Cup final, forcing a replay.

Was that enough to draw Ferguson's attention? The man himself put it down to another reason when they met years later.

Wright was alongside United legends Rio Ferdinand and Paul Scholes for BT Sports' coverage of the 2016 FA Cup final, which was once again Crystal Palace vs Manchester United.

Ferguson came over the greet his former players and Wright before the latter said: "You should have signed me!" with a smile on his face.

The Scot replied: "You were too f***ing dear!" which saw all three players let out a laugh.

Ferguson then followed that up with: "I like cheap buys!"

It's clear that Ferguson knew the talent Wright had, especially after seeing his strikes at old Wembley 26 years prior.

Back then, FA Cup finals weren't settled with extra time and penalties with both teams instead playing the game again a few days later.

Wright wasn't fit enough to start the replay and that's something Ferguson was happy with.

The former Gunners striker explained on his Wrighty's House podcast last year: "We went to Scotland the other day and played golf and Sir Alex was there, Walter Smith was there and Steve Coppell [former Crystal Palace manager] was there.

"I remember that Steve Coppell was playing with another group of people so we were in the lounge and it was me, Alan Shearer, Les Ferdinand, Dean Saunders and Sir Alex Ferguson sitting there.

"Steve Coppell then came past and this, honestly, made me feel amazing.

"I love Steve Coppell, but Sir Alex Ferguson said: 'Thank f**k you didn't play him in the second game'! It was so amazing. We were with him for about an hour and a half at breakfast and he gave us gold.

"He said: 'We were f***ing s***ting ourselves that second game'. I'd never heard that before. It was amazing. It made me feel so good inside."

United would win that replay 1-0 and Wright once again had to come off the bench.