Paul Scholes Drops Bombshell: The Club That Tried to Lure Him Away from Man Utd with Double-Money Deal and His Ultimate Career Regret

Former Manchester United icon Paul Scholes has disclosed that he received a financial offer that significantly exceeded his earnings at Old Trafford, tempting him to depart his childhood club during the summer of 2000.

At that time, Scholes was among the world's finest goal-scoring midfielders, before transitioning to a deeper playmaking position later in his playing days.

He had recently secured his fourth Premier League championship in six seasons as a regular starter, was a Champions League victor as part of the historic treble campaign in 1998–99, and served as a crucial player for the England national team.

Several United stars attracted attention from Serie A during this period, with Italy's premier division eager to maintain its reputation as the globe's strongest league. Ryan Giggs drew interest from Juventus, while Roy Keane also contemplated joining the Turin club. For Scholes, the proposal originated from Inter Milan.

"I received a call from a representative—Ryan Giggs's agent, Harry Swales," Scholes shared on the most recent Stick to Football podcast episode. "This happened during Euro 2000, following [England's] victory over Germany. He told me, 'Inter Milan wants to offer you £4 million ($5.3 million) annually, tax-free.'"

While modest by today's standards, this represented massive compensation in English football during that era. For context, Roy Keane's new deal signed in December 1999 provided him £50,000 weekly, believed to be before taxes, and was Britain's most lucrative agreement at the time. Scholes would have earned approximately £77,000 net weekly in Italy.

"It exceeded my current earnings... likely more than twice as much," he remembered.

"I recall seeing [the report] on a newspaper's back page—'£30 million to Inter Milan', or similar. However, I never heard anything further about it afterward. I clearly declined Harry's proposal."

Podcast host Gary Neville interjected at that point: "The reason you probably didn't hear about it again—though I can't confirm this—I suspect [Inter] approached [Manchester United] and [Alex Ferguson] immediately rejected it."

Although Scholes never intended to leave United, he confessed it triggered something he now considers his greatest career mistake.

"Here's something amusing. During preseason, I was advised, 'Paul, visit the manager to request a salary increase.' It's the worst decision I ever made, truly. I felt terrible. I believe I said something like, 'I believe I merit higher wages.' What was I thinking?!" he continued.

"[Ferguson] retrieved a small black notebook and spent about five minutes browsing through it [before saying], 'No, I believe you're on par with everyone else, it's acceptable.' That remains my greatest football regret, making that request. My pulse quickens thinking about it now, because I felt so guilty about it."

This week's Stick to Football podcast featuring Paul Scholes is currently available on YouTube and all major podcast platforms.