Manchester United are making up for missing out on Rio Ferdinand's heir with transfer target

A year before his transfer to Manchester City, John Stones was house-hunting in Hale.

That was hardly unusual for a Merseyside-based player. Stones, Romelu Lukaku and Aaron Lennon were partial to days off in Manchester city centre during their Everton stints and Ronald Koeman resided in Alderley Edge while the club's manager.

At the time that Stones was considering relocating, the expectation was if there was a Manchester club an Evertonian tyro was bound for, it was United. Wayne Rooney was always destined to head down the East Lancs Road and Ross Barkley was regularly linked with United at his zenith.

David Moyes was as much of a sceptic as a supporter of Barkley's at Everton. After one of his final matches in charge of the club, Moyes said Barkley had "a long way to go and you should not expect to see him regularly". As United manager, Moyes discounted a move for Barkley as he prioritised securing Rooney's future.

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In 2016, a United move for Stones appeared probable as they waited for Jose Mourinho. Everton had rejected three bids of £20m, £25m and £30m for Stones from Chelsea when Mourinho was their manager in 2015. A year later, Stones transferred to City for £47.5m, including add-ons.

Stones became a likely target for City once they announced the coming of Pep Guardiola. Stones was named in Roy Hodgson's England squad for the 2016 European Championship but he had become a figure of fun after Everton's 11th-place finish in the Premier League table.

"You know nothing, John Stones," was a popular refrain, a play on one of the most recited quotes