I WAS THROWN £30 TO SIGN FOR UNITED

HARRY GREGG became the world’s most expensive goalkeeper when Manchester United paid £25,700 for him in December 1957.

His cut of the deal was just £30.

But there were no hard feelings this week as Gregg – a survivor of the Munich air disaster which claimed the lives of 11 United players and staff – was asked about Liverpool’s £67million outlay on Alisson Becker from Roma and Chelsea’s eyewatering £71.6m for Kepa Arrizabalaga from Atletico Madrid.

“Players earn a lot of money these days – and people will say too much – but wages and transfer fees are what the clubs can afford to pay,” the 85-year-old Irishman (below) said. “When United signed me, I only got 30 quid from the deal because I had just got about £500 from Doncaster from a testimonial after being with the club for five years. But do you know what? I felt so very lucky. I would have signed for United for nothing and would have walked from Doncaster to do it.”

Gregg returned to the north west from his home in Coleraine earlier this week as blue plaques and murals were unveiled in honour of former Manchester City keeper Frank Swift and ex-blackpool skipper Jimmy Armfield, who died in January. Swift went on to a career in journalism and perished at Munich.

Gregg added: “One of the things that is not well known about the crash is that the players weren’t insured.

“At the time, players weren’t regarded by the men who owned the clubs as being anything special.”