I almost joined Man United – it was 50/50 but Manuel Pellegrini convinced me
manchestereveningnews.co.ukMarcos Senna revealed he was tantalisingly close to becoming a Manchester United player before Manuel Pellegrini swayed his decision.
The Brazilian-born midfielder, who later chose to play for Spain internationally, climbed up through the ranks at Rio Branco-SP and moved to Corinthians in 1999.
By 2001 found himself on Juventude's roster, before joining Sao Caetano in early 2002. Senna's stint at the Sao Paulo club was brief; he soon took off for European shores, joining Villarreal during the summer of 2002.
He chalked up an impressive tally of 33 goals in 361 appearances over 11 years at the Spanish club. Yet, his career path almost veered towards Manchester United in 2006 - a detail he shared with Goal in 2020, reminiscing about the opportunity to work under Sir Alex Ferguson. READ MORE: 'I am sure' Manuel Pellegrini responds to Man City 115 charges READ MORE: I saw how £21m Savinho delighted Man City fans on his first appearance He explained: "I did not talk to [Ferguson], but my agent and Villarreal did, and I was very close to signing for Manchester United.
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