Man City would have been the first English club to win the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League treble had Tottenham got their way.
That is because Spurs had agreed a £5.5million transfer with Manchester United to take Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to White Hart Lane in 1998.
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But the stubborn ‘baby-faced assassin’ ultimately rejected a switch to north London, before scoring a last-gasp winner in the European Cup final against Bayern Munich a year later.
It capped a remarkable season for the Red Devils, who also won the Premier League and FA Cup to seal their place in history.
Sir Alex Ferguson’s side went one better than the Liverpool squad of the 1983/84 season that also scooped three major trophies, but they lifted the League Cup instead of the FA Cup.
Fast forward to June 10, 2023, and United’s arch-rivals City matched their landmark feat 24 years later.
And had it not been for Solskjaer’s refusal to join Spurs, the Citizens would have permanent bragging rights over their neighbours.
Solskjaer joined United from Norwegian side Molde in 1996, but found regular game time hard to come by in the 1997/98 season with Andy Cole and Teddy Sheringham the preferred partnership up top.
It led United chairman Martin Edwards and Spurs counterpart Alan Sugar to agree upon a £5.5m transfer, with the deal only needing Solskjaer’s signature.
The striker’s agent pushed for the move to go through, but Ferguson was determined not to part ways with his ‘super-sub’, who would go on to score 18 goals the following campaign.
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Speaking to FourFourTwo about the failed transfer, Solskjaer remarked: “Martin Edwards and Alan Sugar had agreed a fee – £5.5m, I think.
“But the gaffer called me into his office and said: ‘I don’t really want to sell you because if you stay here you’ll play enough football.’
“That was enough for me. I didn’t want to go – my agent did.
“He said he had never met a person as stubborn as me. But I was right. I normally am!”
In a separate interview with the Manchester Evening News, he stated: “When you walk out of his office and he says you will be part of his squad you walk out ten feet tall. I was as happy as Larry.”
It proved to be the best football decision of his career – despite falling further down the pecking order after United signed Dwight Yorke that summer from Aston Villa.
Even though Solskjaer was restricted to just 19 top-flight appearances, he was lethal in front of goal.
That was evident when he poked home in the third minute of stoppage time in the 1999 Champions League final as United came back from behind to beat Bayern in dramatic fashion.
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It secured his place in United folklore, with his fan favourite status seeing him become the club’s manager from between 2018-2021.
And he used his transfer saga to help convince David de Gea and Anthony Martial into staying at the Theatre of Dreams.
Speaking ahead of a clash against Bournemouth in December 2018, the 50-year-old warned the duo it is a privilege to play for United, and told the pair the grass isn’t always greener.
He said at a press conference: “I had loads of offers and possibilities to move, but the manager (Ferguson) sat me down and told me I was going to be an important part of his team, his squad and I was going to play enough games.
“I felt privileged to play here. I am also stubborn. The club agreed to sell me to Spurs one time and I said ‘no, thank you.’
“My agent wanted me to go, but I knew I was at the best place. I wasn’t sure the grass was greener somewhere else. I had a period when I wasn’t playing.
“I would get angry. Then he would put me in the team and I would feel a big part of it and important. Sir Alex was the best when it came to managing squad players.
“We’re not talking about squad players now, we are talking about top players.
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“If you are a regular at Manchester United, I think you should grasp the opportunity to stay here and become part of the history.”
In total, Solskjaer banged in 126 goals from his 366 outings in all competitions during his 11-year stay, before he retired in 2007.
And while he may never have been the star striker under Ferguson’s tutelage, his impact at United is everlasting.
Should he have decided to join Spurs, his legacy and United’s history would have changed forever.
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