Rio Ferdinand was once forced to shut down a bar in Leeds after police warned that it could get vandalised.
The defender swapped Elland Road for Old Trafford in 2002 to become the world’s most expensive defender for a second time amid his £30m fee. This was a controversial move given the rivalry between the two clubs.
The pair face off in a double-header this week with the Whites visiting Old Trafford on Wednesday before the reverse fixture on Saturday. Both teams are fighting at opposite ends of the table but the rivalry now is still as present as it was two decades ago.
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Ferdinand had not long opened ‘Sutra’ in Leeds upon his switch to United, but recently detailed how he was forced to shut the bar down quickly. He also described how he had to have a police escort when he returned to Elland Road for the first time amid fears of the potential animosity from home fans.
Speaking to William Hill, Ferdinand explained: “I had a bar that was only just opened in Leeds and when I signed for Man United, the head of the police rang me. I don’t know how he got my number, but he rang me and said ‘just to let you know, I’d advise you don’t open your bar.
“‘If you open your bar there will be people coming down to mash it up, we’ve got intel that they’re looking to destroy your place.’ So that place got put to sleep straight away, never opened again, dormant, gone. And then I started understanding the rivalry.
“When we went back to Leeds with Man United for the first time, we actually got beat 1-0, I think. I had to have a police escort to get into the ground because where the bus used to park to get into the ground you have to walk a little bit and, yeah it was madness, crazy.”
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