Juan Sebastian Veron admits his regret at joining Chelsea from Manchester United in 2023
Former Chelsea midfielder Juan Sebastian Veron opens up about his regret over joining the Blues from Manchester United in 2003. At Chelsea Veron never met those expectations and was looked at as a peripheral figure.
Veron was among the greatest midfielders and was signed by United for a mammoth £28 million fee, which was regarded as the highest price during that time. The midfielder established himself first at Boca Juniors before making a name for himself in Serie A at Sampdoria, Parma, and Lazio. This earned him the attention of Sir Alex Ferguson and his signing for United was greeted with plenty of hype.
Embed from Getty ImagesAmong other Red Devils heroes, he established himself as a vital midfielder by living up to the hoopla and making an immediate impact at Old Trafford. However that was the zenith to his career in red. Veron’s performances dwindled, and the Old Trafford outfit was forced to sell him to Chelsea for a cut-price of £15 million.
Despite scoring on his Blues debut against Liverpool Veron once again failed to push on and make a career for himself in one of the Premier League’s top sides. At Chelsea, he only made 14 appearances before being sent on loan to Inter Milan in 2004. Since then, he has regretted the decision to join Chelsea, as he told FourFourTwo (h/t Daily Star):
“I felt that going to Chelsea could have been a good chance for me to get a longer sequence of matches, but I shouldn’t have gone there.”
“I don’t say that because of Chelsea, though. It’s nice to have a club wanting to sign you and excited that you can do something for them. To make an investment like that, the club has to believe in you and trust you.”
In the Premier League, Veron never had that sort of impact. However, his first few years at United were spectacular, and he produced excellent numbers for the team in 82 games as a midfielder, tallying 11 goals and 15 assists. However, after moving to West London, things never worked out for him because he was loaned to Inter for his second season.
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Had he stayed at United, things may have turned out differently; we’ll never know. Perhaps his struggles stemmed from the fact that he never adjusted to life in London and when you join a club like Chelsea fans demand an instant impression on the pitch from you but it appeared Veron failed to meet those conditions.