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Over a decade ago John Obi Mikel made the decision to reject a move to Manchester United in favour of Chelsea.

Having impressed for Nigeria at the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championships - winning the Silver Ball after being voted the tournament's second-best player behind Lionel Messi - the midfielder was involved in what turned out to be a controversial tug-of-war between the two Premier League giants.

At one stage the Red Devils believed they had signed Mikel. In fact they went as far as revealing on their official website that a deal was done and there was a footage of the midfielder receiving a United shirt from club representative Jim Ryan with the number 21.

However, Mikel stated his desire to play for the Blues instead and the Stamford Bridge outfit eventually settled the matter by paying United £12million and Lyn £4m in 2006.

In his entry in The Players Tribune, Mikel reveals why turned down one of the biggest clubs in world football.

"Well, my Dad wasn’t too pleased about what happened either. He wanted me to go to Manchester United because he loved Alex Ferguson," he said. "Back home in Nigeria, a lot of people were saying I should go to United because of how well they work with young players, whereas Chelsea just bought superstars.

"And it’s true, I was only 18 years old and Chelsea had players like Lampard, Ballack and Makelele in midfield. A lot of people in Nigeria doubted that I could even make the Chelsea team if I went there.

"So … why did I turn down the biggest club in the world?

"I’ll tell you what happened. I had all these people on both sides fighting over me. Agents, managers, strangers, guys handing me papers. I had Sir Alex Ferguson calling me on the phone on one side.

"And I had Roman Abramovich on the other side, putting me up in London, hiding me somewhere where only a few people knew where I was. It was really confusing, and I was a kid, you know?

"After a while, someone from FIFA gave me a phone call. They said, “Listen, we know you’re young and you have these two clubs fighting over you. We can’t decide for you. You can only go where you want. You have to tell us.”

"I thought about it for a long time. It was the biggest decision of my life.

"You know what made my mind up? Chelsea had signed three other players from Nigeria along with me. They were staying with me at the house in London to keep me company. These guys … their lives depended on the decision I was making.

"If I went to United, they were gone. If I went to Chelsea, they were going to have a career. No matter how long it lasted, that was important to me. Just to give them a chance, you know?

"I chose Chelsea, and four lives changed that day."

In the end, choosing Chelsea proved to be the right one.

Mikel spent a decade at the club, winning every single major honour available to him - including the Champions League in 2012 - before leaving for Chinese Super League outfit Tianjin Teda in 2017.

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