02 September 2023 , 13:35
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The Class of 92, the co-owners of Salford City, "couldn't f***ing wrap their heads around" why their joint managers didn't want a Manchester United trialist.
Anthony Johnson and Bernard Morley were appointed by Gary Neville and co when they were several leagues from League Two as they embarked on their rapid rise through non-league. Johnson and Morley had a history of promotions at that level and were hired - but immediately butted heads with the Manchester United legends.
Neville, his brother Phil, Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes and Nicky Butt had bought in young right-back Sadiq El Fitouri shortly before Johnson and Morley arrived when they were in the Northern Premier League North Division. El Fitouri was a United trialist at the time, but wasn't fancied by the managers, which threw the co-owners.
Johnson told the I Had Trials Once podcast: "That was one of our first problems. That game that we came to watch, what [caretakers] Scholesy and Phil Neville managed, Sadiq El Fitouri made his debut. So they went ‘what do you think?’ And we went ‘well it’s January, he’s a good player, but we need lads who can defend and run’.
"And they’re looking as us as if we to go ‘but we’ve got him on trial at United and you don’t want him’. And we went ‘we do want him, but Cavell Coo’s gonna play’. And they couldn’t f***ing wrap their heads around it. They were looking at us as if to go ‘what the f*** have we brought in here’."
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Johnson and Morley took the club up to the National League, winning promotion as champions from the National League North before the club and the two managers parted ways. The former admitted his first interaction with Neville left him shocked and suggested the pair were on different wavelengths.
Sadiq El Fitouri was at Salford having been on Man Utd's books (Getty Images)
Anthony Johnson was appointed by the Class of 92 (PA)"We were told by Gary on our first meeting, he was abroad and we had a Zoom call," he added. "Scholesy were there, Phil were there, [chairman] Karen [Baird], me, Bernard, and he said ‘don’t worry about next season, get in the play-offs, have a good run, but find out what you want for next year, then we’ll have a go at it'.
"I remember thinking ‘what the f*** are we doing here then? What the f*** are you talking about? Really? We won promotion from this league last year (with Ramsbottom), beaten Darlo three times’."