Former Manchester United defender Nemanja Vidic has revealed he came close to joining Liverpool before Alex Ferguson convinced him to make the move to Old Trafford instead.
The centre-back was pondering leaving Spartak Moscow for the Anfield side in 2006, only for arch-rivals United to step in and hijack the deal.
"Yes [I nearly joined Liverpool]. Rafa Benitez called me and I nearly went there," Vidic told FourFourTwo.
"I was interested in going but my English wasn't good and I was struggling to communicate.
"Then Manchester United came. Fergie called me at my apartment and said: 'I watched you play for Serbia against France - I want you here.' United were decisive. Everything was done very quickly, within two days."
"I would like to be a manager, but only if I had the opportunity first to be a coach and learn from someone for maybe one or two years," he added.
"I would take the experiences I had of the managers I've worked under.
"Nemanja the manager won't be the same Nemanja that you saw on the pitch. They are two completely different roles."
