Eligibility regulations prevented Manchester United from completing my signing – Mikel

Former Chelsea midfielder John Obi Mikel has disclosed that Manchester United failed to complete his signing after a trial due to regulations affecting young African players.

Speaking in an interview with Sky Sports on Tuesday, Mikel explained that he was only 16 years old when he spent about a month on trial at Old Trafford, during which he trained consistently with the senior squad.

He said the club’s manager at the time, Sir Alex Ferguson, was impressed by his performances and frequently partnered him with experienced midfielder Roy Keane in training sessions.

“Fergie loved me. He would always pair me with Roy Keane because he thought Keane would protect me from the likes of Paul Scholes and Nicky Butt, who were always tackling people in training,” Mikel said.

Despite Ferguson’s admiration, Mikel noted that a Premier League regulation prevented United from finalising the deal. According to him, the rule stipulated that African players must have featured in at least 75 per cent of their national team’s matches before they could be eligible to sign.

“At the time, the rule required players to have represented their national team in at least 75% of matches before being eligible to sign,” he said.

Mikel explained that he had not yet made an appearance for Nigeria’s national team, meaning he did not qualify under the rule. He added that his age also worked against him, as he was too young to play for the first team, making it impossible for United to complete the transfer.

“The strategy was to get me in and out before I turned 18,” Mikel explained, referring to the club’s approach to signing young talents, “but that wasn’t possible in my case.”

Mikel’s account highlights the challenges young African players often encounter when attempting to secure moves to elite European clubs, even when they attract interest from top managers.