Leeds United have always had a thing for big, physical centre-forwards who love a scrap as much as they love a goal.
And, in many ways, Duncan Ferguson still feels, to this day, like a classic Leeds United number nine that never was.
Though that was not for a lack of trying on Leeds’ end.
When fans’ favourite Lee Chapman bid an emotional farewell to life at Elland Road in 1993 – just two years after helping fire Howard Wilkinson’s side to the last-ever First Division title – the Yorkshire giants were under pressure to fill a sizeable void in their frontline.
A void they looked to fill with the rising star of Scottish football that was a baby-faced, curtain-haired Duncan Ferguson.
Leeds United had bid accepted before Duncan Ferguson joined Rangers
Three inches taller than Chapman and over a decade younger, Ferguson might have been a striker at the other end of his footballing journey but Leeds obviously saw enough potential in the then-21-year-old to invest a club-record transfer fee.
At the time, their most-expensive ever signing was the late David Rocastle, brought in for £2 million from Arsenal the year previously. Ferguson, despite having only two seasons of senior football under his belt at Dundee United, would have set Leeds back what was an eye-watering fee of £3.25 million.
An offer Dundee United simply could not refuse.
“Terms have been agreed between ourselves and Leeds,” the club’ vice-chairman Doug Smith would confirm. “And as far as we are concerned, it is between Leeds and Ferguson.”
And that is where things went wrong.
Leeds were blown out of the water by Rangers – the Glasgow powerhouses stumped up a British record fee of £4 million for Ferguson – while Brian Deane ended up making the short trip from Sheffield United to Elland Road instead.
And, for a while at least, Leeds appeared to have got the better of this particular arrangement. Deane fired Leeds to a fifth-place finish in 1993/94 after hitting 11 league goals. Ferguson, in contrast, would become one of the biggest flops in Rangers’ history when recording only five in 25 games in that famous blue shirt.
Brian Deane struggled after Leeds hired George Graham
Of course, a fine spell at Everton ensured that Ferguson’s career is remembered for far more than his ill-fated spell at Ibrox.
In hindsight, a man more popularly known as ‘Big Dunc’ in football parlance might also have ended up with relatively few regrets about that aborted switch to Leeds.
As the aforementioned Deane would later explain, leading the line for a George Graham team between 1996 and 1998 was about as fun as pulling teeth without the comfort of anaesthetic.
“It was tough,” Deane recalled, speaking to Planet Football about a season in which Leeds mustered a grand total of 28 goals in 38 league matches.
“There were times when we went out there and we had six centre-halves. Sometimes, we had seven. I learnt a lot under George because when he came in it was about getting stability in the team and he made us very hard to beat.
“But as a forward, I took it on board personally. It was just frustrating being the top scorer with not that many goals.”
Back in modern times, Leeds are finding goals a lot easier to come by. Daniel Farke’s ‘unplayable’ frontline obliterated Watford on Tuesday night, going five points clear at the top of the Championship in the process.
Brian Deane has been firm in his backing for Leeds boss Farke. And, as a return to the Premier League becomes ever-more likely, the faith shown by Deane and the more patient members of the Elland Road fanbase looks destined to pay off.
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