Dennis Bergkamp traveled to London to sign for Chelsea, not Arsenal, as agent reveals sensational transfer collapse

In the Clock End of the Emirates Stadium there is an unmistakable statue of Dennis Bergkamp, ​​however, if things had gone according to plan, he would now be outside Stamford Bridge.

The bronze represents the Arsenal icon in full flow, catching the ball in the air with his unrivaled technique on the way to becoming a club legend.

However, if it had been up to him, he would have worn blue, not red and white.

Bergkamp joined the Gunners in 1995 from Inter de Milan After a difficult stage in Italy. Having already demonstrated his ability with Holland and AjaxIt was certainly a surprise, but not enough of a deterrent for not just one Premier League team, but two.

Looking to escape Serie A, Bergkamp had found his ideal landing spot in Chelseawho were led by their childhood hero. Glenn Hoddle. However, things did not go as planned.

Revealing everything that never existed behind the Chelsea legend, the agent who negotiated the deal, Jerome Anderson, told talkSPORT: “It's a fascinating story and I'm not sure if it has ever been told in its entirety or its truth. .

“Dennis's hero when he was young was Glenn Hoddle. When he was young he loved wearing the number 10 shirt, finally, after having gone through a difficult time in Italy, he decided that he would like to come play in England.

“Dennis' situation was this, he had agreed and we had all agreed that he would sign for Chelsea and literally the day he came with his wife he was no longer flying so he was driving. I got a call from the then manager General Colin Hutchinson.”

Anderson was then thrown an almighty key, a key that could have stopped Bergkamp's car, had he been conscious.

“He said we still want to sign Dennis but we don't have the money,” revealed the first authorized FIFA agent. “It was a real surprise as we had been working on the agreement for a long time.

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“I got to thinking and thought 'well, we've got Dennis coming from overseas with his wife, he's driving, it's going to take several hours.'

“I called his personal Dutch agent and explained what happened and told him that I had an idea: would they give me permission to speak to an institutional club, which is Arsenal? And he said of course.”

Bergkamp's approval set off a wild chain of events that kept Anderson up all night forging a deal that would make history.

“I put down the phone and called David Dein, I told him: 'Something has happened today and you may have an incredible opportunity to sign a player who has not yet reached his prime and is well known as a wonderful international player who went through a difficult time in Italy. He is Dennis Bergkamp.

“He said, 'We might be interested, but the first thing you need to do is talk to the manager.' So I got in my car, drove up to Bruce Rioch and said, 'Would you like to sign Dennis Bergkamp?' He said, 'Jerome, if we can sign Dennis Bergkamp, ​​I would sign him tomorrow.'

“I went back to my office and made some phone calls while Dennis continued driving, not knowing what was going on.

“David knew that because I had such a strong affiliation with Arsenal that my beliefs were genuine, so David organized a board meeting that lasted several hours at his home. “It was £7.5 million, a fixed fee, Inter Milan would not change that price.”

Anderson then faced an anxious wait. Could he bring Bergkamp to his own club or would he have to break the bad news to one of the game's great magicians?

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“The board agreed to try to make this happen, so I called Dennis' agent,” he revealed.

“Dennis came in and at first he was upset because Glenn was his hero and he was eager to work with him.

“I said, 'Look, at least talk to Bruce, go to Highbury and have a look at the marble walls and try to understand the history of what is a great, great club.

“He agreed and luckily got along very well with Mr Rioch, and the rest is history.”

That history included three Premier League titles and four FA Cups in 11 years, and the status of one of English football's most beloved players.

Such a talent would probably always have broken through in England, but many in north London were unaware of how close they came to seeing him play in the colors of one of their fiercest rivals.