Former Liverpool starlet Bobby Duncan reportedly turned down a chance to join Manchester United before signing for Fiorentina in the summer window.
As reported by Daily Mail, Italian football agent Vincenzo Morabito has revealed that former Liverpool forward Bobby Duncan rejected the opportunity to sign for arch rivals Manchester United before joining Serie A outfit Fiorentina as he ‘didn’t want to betray’ his former club.
Duncan had been heralded as one of the finest young talents in the Liverpool youth setup since joining the Reds from Manchester City last year. The forward bagged 23 goals and 8 assists in 26 matches for Liverpool’s Under-18 side across all competitions last season, while he netted twice for the Reds’ Under-19 team in the UEFA Youth League as well.
Duncan’s exploits over the past campaign had seen him getting promoted to the Liverpool Under-23 setup this term, with the striker making 3 appearances. However, the 18-year-old was concerned about his chances of breaking into the first-team setup at Anfield and wanted to leave the club.
Liverpool though, were not keen on letting the teenager leave and rejected multiple loan offers from clubs, which led to strained relationship between the player and the club. Duncan’s agent Saif Rubie slammed the Merseyside giants for their behaviour in the entire situation, claiming they were ‘damaging his mental health.’
Finally, Liverpool yielded on their stance and allowed Duncan to leave the club late in the transfer window, with the teenage striker joining Italian giants Fiorentina in a £1.8 million deal. The 18-year-old snubbed a move to Lazio in favour of the Viola and has signed a three-year contract with the club.
Italian agent Vincenzo Morabito, who worked closely with Duncan’s representative Rubie to get the deal over the line, has now revealed that the teenage sensation had a number of interested parties, including Liverpool’s bitter rivals Manchester United, but refused to join the Premier League heavyweights out of respect for the Merseysiders.
“It all started in April. Saif contacted me and we set to work to find new accommodation for Bobby. The boy did not want to betray Liverpool and said no to United who insisted so much with him,” Morabito told the Daily Mail.
Duncan is a highly-rated youngster with immense potential and clearly has a bright future ahead of him. But, switching Liverpool for Manchester United might not have done a great deal to boost his first-team aspirations. So, the transfer to Fiorentina makes sense where he has a more realistic chance of breaking into the senior setup under Vincenzo Montella.