- Bergvall scored his first goal for Spurs to help the team beat Liverpool in the League Cup.
- The Swedish teenager had two trials with Manchester United in 2020 and 2022
- Hear It's all starting! Jack Grealish will not be allowed to roam at Man City… will be sold this summer if things don't change
Manchester United fans have been left dismayed by the revelation that the Red Devils twice missed the chance to sign Tottenham wonderkid Lucas Bergvall.
The 18-year-old scored a dramatic and controversial winning goal as the north Londoners beat Liverpool in the Carabao Cup semi-final first leg on Wednesday night.
Bergvall's first goal for Spurs came 11 months after the club hijacked Barcelona's attempt to sign the attacking midfielder. He joined the team in the summer from Swedish side Djurgardens IF for a fee of £8 million and has made 22 appearances this season.
But things could have been very different for the Swedish international, who played two trials with the Red Devils, one when he was 14 years old and another when he was 16.
According the sunThe midfielder was wanted by Old Trafford scouts, but regulations following the United Kingdom's departure from the European Union prevented them from signing him.
Under current FIFA rules, players under 18 cannot be sold abroad, except for those within the European Economic Area. As a result, Bergvall remained in Sweden before attracting interest from Barcelona as his 18th birthday approached.
Lucas Bergvall scored a dramatic late goal as Tottenham beat Liverpool 1-0 in the first leg of their Carabao Cup semi-final.
The Swedish prodigy had two trials with Manchester United in 2020, at the age of 14, and in 2022, at the age of 16.
Bergvall was lucky to escape a second booking shortly before scoring the winning goal on Wednesday night.
One fan wrote on
“(His goal) tonight is to prove that karma exists,” wrote another. A third Red Devils fan cheekily added: “Once a red, always a red.”
Bergvall's goal on Wednesday night came in controversial circumstances, with the teenager beating Alisson shortly after escaping a second yellow card for a foul on Kostas Tsimikas.
Reds manager Arne Slot was left outraged by the referee's leniency, while assistant Sipke Hulshoff was reprimanded for his angry protests after the goal.
“I don't think there's any debate about it,” Slot said. “I think I saw Ange sitting here on Saturday and Spurs were not happy with some decisions.
'One went against them, tonight maybe one went for them.
'The decisions have been made, they cannot be changed. When he didn't show the second yellow card, no one thought it would have such a big impact 30 seconds later.
“I'm 99.9 percent sure I wasn't the only one who didn't feel good when he came in. For him (the referee) it wasn't ideal either.”
To add insult to injury, Tsimikas was off the field waiting to re-enter due to the challenge when the Swede scored, with the Reds temporarily reduced to 10 men.
The result gives Ange Postecoglou's team the advantage ahead of the return match at Anfield on February 6.
