Stan Collymore has admitted Joe Royle came really close to signing him for Everton.
The former Liverpool striker played two years on Merseyside, but he could have easily found himself wearing blue instead of red.
Around that period, Everton boasted the likes of Duncan Ferguson in their side during his first stint at Goodison Park.
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Collymore has now revealed that Royle wanted him to play alongside Big Dunc.
What Joe Royle told Stan Collymore about joining Everton
Wayne Rooney thinks Ferguson is the strongest striker in Premier League history, having grown up watching the Scot.
That is the exact partnership Royle wanted to build on Merseyside, with Collymore sharing the story on X.
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“Met Joe Royle at Mere Hotel in Cheshire. Everton Football Club were the most professional, friendly, courteous and respectful people I’ve ever dealt with in any business I’ve been involved in,” he said.
“And Joe Royle just said ‘I want you and Big Dunc up top, I think you’d destroy defenders’.”
Collymore ended his time at Anfield empty-handed, but he did offer a return of 35 goals from his 81 appearances.
In a period where the game was considerably more physical than it is now, Ferguson and Collymore certainly would have been an imposing partnership.
Despite playing 10 times against Everton in his career, Collymore’s only goal against the Blues came during his time at Nottingham Forest.
Royle has admitted he’s still stunned by his Everton exit, which came to a conclusion in 1997.
With a belief there was frustration over the purchases being made at Goodison Park at the time, Royle had already set his standard with players like Collymore.
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