Kieron Dyer could have been one of Arsenal’s Invincibles if he hadn’t made a rash decision as a young footballer.
The speedy winger became the talk of English football after advancing his career with Ipswich Town in the late 1990s.
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After failing to gain promotion in the 1998/99 season, interest grew in Dyer, who told The Pitch Prospect that other offers were on the table when he moved to Newcastle for £6.5 million.
Speaking to Drive, Dyer explained that a move away from his boyhood club was inevitable as he had come so close to the Premier League in a team full of quality players.
He said: “We had Richard Wright, myself, James Scowcroft and David Johnson – really good young players, so the director’s box was full of scouts and it was always in the paper that we were probably going to go this summer, so it was like that.” somehow expected.
“I remember coming back from pre-season and [manager] George Burley pulls me into the office and says, “We haven’t received any offers that we want to accept. So when you start the season with us, you have to keep your head down.” I said, “Yes, of course.”
“Then we finished training and someone said: ‘The gaffer wants to see you in his office’ and I go there and he says: ‘We’ve just accepted an offer of six and a half million so you have to go now.’
“I had to go to Stansted Airport and meet my agent before flying to Newcastle.
“But if I had been a bit smarter I probably wouldn’t have ended up in Newcastle.”
“Arsenal wanted me to talk to Arsene Wenger at the time, I spoke to David O’Leary and Leeds on the phone, I spoke to Harry Redknapp, who was manager of West Ham at the time.”
Dyer was signed by Ruud Gullit in 1999 and spent eight years at St James’ Park between 1997 and 2007, making 250 appearances for the club.
Although the midfielder clearly enjoyed his time in the North East, he failed to win a single piece of silverware, which cannot be said of the Gunners during that time.
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Arsenal enjoyed a true period of dominance under Wenger during these years, winning two Premier League titles, three FA Cups and as many Community Shields.
It was also an era that will go down in football history: Wenger’s team was nicknamed “the Invincibles” because they went through the entire 2003/2004 Premier League season without a single defeat.
While at Newcastle he was able to play with record goalscorer Alan Shearer, among others, at Arsenal he was able to play alongside Thierry Henry, Patrick Vieira and Robert Pires, to name just a few.
Looking at the other interested clubs, he said: “If I had known what I know now, I would have said, ‘I want to wait a bit longer’ and would have seen if Arsenal or Leeds had increased their offer because I did would have the chance to be part of the Invincibles squad.
Laughing at his youthful mindset, he added: “Because you’re so young and naive – and my agent told me what Newcastle were offering – it was kind of like, ‘Let’s go.’
“You don’t really know because you don’t have experience.”
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Dyer had a strained relationship with Newcastle at times, but often showed why the club paid so much money for one of the country’s most talented young players.
He moved to West Ham in 2007 and retired from the game in 2013 after brief spells at QPR and Middlesbrough as well as a spell at Ipswich.
Although Arsenal have not won a league title since 2004, they are currently fighting for the top flight for the third consecutive year.
However, they are likely to fail again as league leaders Liverpool have a lead over them and Arne Slot’s men still have a game in hand.
Newcastle, meanwhile, are fighting to win the Champions League for the second time in three years, with the Toon in sixth place – two points behind the top four.