Manuel Pellegrini has admitted he was very keen on bringing Alexis Sánchez to Manchester City before Arsenal snapped him up in the summer of 2014.
The former City manager is a firm admirer of his fellow Chilean and has since watched him grow in stature at The Emirates.
However his plans to lure the then Barcelona forward to The Etihad were scuppered by the trouble City was having at the time after breaching UEFA’s Financial Fair Play rules.
Speaking to radio station ADN Pellegrini said:
“He was one of the best in the world and he showed it every day.
“He was a major player we wanted to take to City.
“We could not take him before he signed for Arsenal, it was because the club was punished for Financial Fair Play. I did not have the space in the squad for him.”
In 2014 City was found guilty of breaking the FFP guidelines and slapped with a £16 million fine. The club also faced limits on both spending and squad size.
For Pellegrini, Sanchez seems to be the one that got away.
