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Jesper Olsen has recalled his move to Manchester United in 1984, as part of a fascinating chat on the new UTD Podcast episode.
The Denmark international was a glamorous overseas purchase by Ron Atkinson, having made his mark at international level and with Dutch giants Ajax.
In conversation with Helen Evans, Lou Macari and Wes Brown at Old Trafford, as part of his visit with his Future Football soccer school, the ex-winger admitted he needed no persuading to come to Manchester and compete in Division One, bringing his skills to the club and operating on the opposite flank to another talented wide man in Gordon Strachan.
Olsen’s culture shock at United Video
Olsen’s culture shock at United
Jesper recalls trips to the bookies with Alan Brazil and lock-ins with Paddy Crerand…
“I think we [Denmark] played England in the qualifiers for the European Championship in France ’84,” recalled Jesper. “And I scored a goal in the last minutes, against England in Copenhagen, so I think Ron Atkinson then kind of took notice of me and followed me for a while.
“And I always supported Man United so, when they came knocking on the door, there was no doubt. I mean, I had to go.
“Then, at the end of the season in 1984, I obviously came here, but I came here before then, to meet Martin Edwards, the chairman, and sign the contract and so on. They brought me here, of course, because there was no doubt that I was going to sign, looking at the stadium, and then I signed at the end of 1983/84.”
When asked by Macari if there was added pressure to follow in the footsteps of the hugely popular wingers of the 1970s, Gordon Hill and Steve Coppell, Olsen was honest with his answer.
“No, not really,” he replied. “I mean I always think, I believed that I could play anywhere in any team, I think, in those days, because I was very confident as a player.
“I had no problem with that. I loved to watch, like I said, Gordon Hill, as well of course, and I played at Ajax with the likes of Johan Cruyff and Marco van Basten, Frank Rijkaard, Ronald Koeman, all these players that became big stars. And the Dutch had a way of, [well] they have an amazing belief in what they do is the right thing.
“So I learned so much at Ajax in three years, that I saw this is just amazing how much I’ve developed, from coming out of semi-professionalism to professional football. It was an amazing three years actually.”
Look out for the UTD Podcast with Jesper Olsen from 18:00 BST on Monday, across the usual platforms.
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