Duncan Hamilton, who wrote autobiographies for both Best and Clough, made this statement in an interview:
"One of the interesting things is that Brian thought about signing George for Derby in about 1971 or 72, after he had his first parting from Manchester United and he said he would have sorted him out in a month. So I would have been fascinated to see whether or not that was the case. I think he probably would have handled him a bit differently. I think the first meeting might have been very sparky. And I think he probably would have got the best out of George really."
Best also says in Hard Tackles and Dirty Baths, a 'history of football's golden years' which doubles as a semi-autobiography, at the start of the chapter on 1971-72: "I simply adored Brian Clough's management style, and perhaps it is one of my regrets that I was never a player under his leadership; I feel sure I would have enjoyed it immensely. I can imagine there being many people thing I was such a rebel there was no chance of me and Cloughie hitting it off. How wrong they would be. I had no time for liars and cheats, but Brian Clough was the genuine article and I wish he had been my manager because I know, under the right guidance, I could have stayed on and played at the highest level for longer than I did."
If Clough had signed Best for Derby in 1972, could they really have worked together? And if they had, and maybe gone on to win the European Cup in 1972-73 (they reached the semi-finals in OTL) would that have been enough to avert Clough and Taylor's acrimonious exit from Derby?
"One of the interesting things is that Brian thought about signing George for Derby in about 1971 or 72, after he had his first parting from Manchester United and he said he would have sorted him out in a month. So I would have been fascinated to see whether or not that was the case. I think he probably would have handled him a bit differently. I think the first meeting might have been very sparky. And I think he probably would have got the best out of George really."
Best also says in Hard Tackles and Dirty Baths, a 'history of football's golden years' which doubles as a semi-autobiography, at the start of the chapter on 1971-72: "I simply adored Brian Clough's management style, and perhaps it is one of my regrets that I was never a player under his leadership; I feel sure I would have enjoyed it immensely. I can imagine there being many people thing I was such a rebel there was no chance of me and Cloughie hitting it off. How wrong they would be. I had no time for liars and cheats, but Brian Clough was the genuine article and I wish he had been my manager because I know, under the right guidance, I could have stayed on and played at the highest level for longer than I did."
If Clough had signed Best for Derby in 1972, could they really have worked together? And if they had, and maybe gone on to win the European Cup in 1972-73 (they reached the semi-finals in OTL) would that have been enough to avert Clough and Taylor's acrimonious exit from Derby?