Former United boss David Moyes has admitted that he did not want Marouane Fellaini to be his first signing at the club, revealing that he tried to sign Nemanja Matic first.

Fellaini moved to United on deadline day in 2013, a signing that was unbelievably underwhelming when you remember the whole host of names that were linked at the time.

The Belgian made his £27.5m move, and despite currently being a very big part of the team, the midfielder has often been ridiculed and is a constant reminder of the Moyes era. However, Moyes has revealed that Fellaini was not a player he wanted to sign – or at least not his first choice.

He told the BBC: “I never wanted Marouane Fellaini to be my first Manchester United signing, that is the last thing me and my staff wanted.”

“We looked at Nemanja Matic first. He did not do well at Chelsea and had gone back to Benfica.”

“He was a consideration and we did need a more defensive type who could make passes from the middle of the park. We did not get a lot of the things we hoped for and got Fellaini on deadline day.”

The Scot also revealed how close he was to signing Gareth Bale and Cesc Fabregas, but of course his pursuit of the duo was unsuccessful.

“I spoke to Gareth Bale a couple of times and tried to convince him to join us, we even offered Tottenham more money but he had his heart set on joining Real Madrid.”

“I spoke to Cesc Fabregas on the phone too and he was not sure of his place in the Barcelona team. He said “I will join you if I do not start my first game of the season at Barca’…and he did start.”

“They were the only two who looked like Manchester United players.”

“If Sir Alex Ferguson took over from Sir Alex Ferguson he would have found it tough.”