Spaniard Confirms No Approach From United Before Bayern Switch

Bayern Munich midfielder Thiago Alcantara has revealed there was no contact from Manchester United for his signature, before he completed €25m move from Barcelona to Allianz Arena.

Earlier reports suggested the 22-year-old was strongly linked with a move to Old Trafford. In addition to this, Thiago's father Mazinho revealed that the Premier League champions had held talks in signing the Spaniard, but failed to reach an agreement.

"Thiago was very close to signing with Manchester United .They had talks. But they couldn't find an agreement," Mazinho explained.

However, Thiago has dismissed his father's comments and confirmed United never made an approach before making a switch to Germany. He also admitted a move to re-join with his former manager Pep Guardiola at Bayern was his first choice.

"Nobody from Manchester United spoke to us. Bayern were always my first option. Did Real Madrid want me? That's my business," Thiago said.

"During the summer I had a lot of patience, I was waiting and waiting [for Barca to make an offer] but there comes a [stopping] point. I would never close the door on Barca though - the club gave me so much," he added.

Thiago, who captained Spain's U21 side which won the 2013 Euro championship in Israel claims that Barcelona did not persuade him to stay, when he expressed his desire to leave the La Liga champions.

"I wanted to feel valued. I wanted to leave and the club didn't do anything to make me stay. They knew I wanted to leave, but nobody from the club got in contact to [try to] persuade me to stay. In any case, you can't dwell on the past - it's better to look to the future," the Spaniard stressed.

"[Munich] is wonderful, very pretty and the people at the club and in the city have made things much easier for me [to settle in]," Thiago concluded.

Meanwhile, United have set their eyes on signing Thiago's former teammate Cesc Fabregas. David Moyes has confirmed the English champions' interest in signing the Spanish international.

The Scot revealed that the negotiations are ongoing to bring the former Arsenal skipper to Old Trafford after the first bid was turned down by Barcelona.