10 Players You Didn't Know Real Madrid Almost Signed
9. Shinji Kagawa
''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. Jose Mourinho, November 2013.
Hindsight can be wondrous as it can be cruel. In the summer of 2012, Shinji Kagawa had provided the impetus behind Borussia Dortmunds title glory, usurping Bavarian giants Bayern Munich in the process. With the world at his feet, the elusive playmaker had a host of top clubs to choose from, including the very pinnacle of European football in Real Madrid. As aforementioned, Kagawa didnt fancy spending time on the bench and felt he could develop his undoubted world-class potential at Manchester United. Its two years later, and Ozil and Mourinho have been ousted from the Spanish capital, directly leading to a Champions League triumph, while Kagawa has struggled to make the starting XI for the worst Manchester United side the Premier League has ever known. £35 million man Juan Mata has been bought to play in Kagawas position, leaving the Japanese playmaker to be deployed out of position on the left wing on the rare occasions when he is giving an opportunity. Having slipped into the shadows at Old Trafford, the diminutive midfielder may just rue rejecting the opportunity to ply his trade for the biggest club on the planet.
Recent Journalism & New Media graduate. Insatiable thirst for all things football, and hopes to break into the field of sports journalism in the near future.
Have made a significantly insignificant playing career out of receiving several slaps around the head for not passing the ball.
