According to the Daily Mail, Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho has revealed that he nearly signed current Manchester United player Shinji Kagawa from his former club Borussia Dortmund whilst the Portuguese manager was the supremo at Real Madrid, before the Japanese playmaker decided to choose United instead due to the possibility of more playing time.

Mourinho has been successful at each club he has managed, and Madrid was no exception, as his side conquered the Liga BBVA title and the domestic cups during his time at the club. However, as Barcelona grew from strength to strength, the relationship between Mourinho and club President Florentino Perez deteriorated due to lack of success. Meanwhile, another owner and institution that were not at their best was Roman Abramovich and Chelsea, where his persistent efforts of trying different managers were reaping no rewards. With Manchester City having a sudden flow of funds with the arrival of Sheikh Mansour as new owner, Chelsea were being pushed down as one of the title contenders, leaving the two Manchester clubs to fight it out for the crown. And indeed, if United reclaimed the title last season, it was City who won the year before last, giving warning signs to Abramovich. The Russian then decided to call back Mourinho, and give the once successful partnership another go, to the delight of the Stamford Bridge faithful. However, even though his arrival was greeted with delight by the fans and owner alike, the club have yet to show the impeccable form one would see in Mourinho’s teams. It justifies Mourinho’s earlier statements in the press, which warned fans and the media that results will take time to come, and success may not be achieved in the immediate future.

Kagawa’s time at United cannot be called successful yet, as the creative attacker is yet to get a consistent run into the starting eleven but still managed to become the first Asian player to score a hat-trick in the English Premier League when he got his in the match against Norwich City in March of this year at Old Trafford in United’s 4-0 win. David Moyes has been criticized for his handling of Kagawa, who is said to be unhappy with the lack of playing time. Mourinho could be tempted for another go in the up coming January window, when the transfer window restarts but Shinji has featured more and more lately suggesting Moyes is starting to trust and understand the Japanese attacker which means attempting to sign him could be hiding to nothing.

Mourinho revealed, “We spoke with him and were on the verge of signing him, but I was honest with him and told him that my first choice was Mesut Ozil.”

“I told Kagawa this without hiding anything. In the end he chose Manchester United maybe because he could play more minutes in England.”