Vinicius Junior has revealed Barcelona were interested in signing him but he opted to join bitter foes Real Madrid after being given just two days to make a decision.
The Brazil international officially arrived at the Santiago Bernabeu in July 2018, a year after Madrid agreed a reported £38.7million deal with Flamengo.
He has yet to hit double figures for the club in terms of goals but was on target in March s huge 2-0 win over LaLiga title rivals Barcelona.
However, things could have been a lot different for Vinicius as the winger was offered the chance to join Barca in 2017.
I had proposals from Barca and Madrid and only had two days to choose, he said in Real Madrid TV documentary Campo de Estrellas .
Si, Es hoy! De lejos y de cerca ¡HALAMADRID!
— Vinicius Jr (@viniciusjr)
I see myself in Madrid for a long time, winning everything and being very successful.
Vinicius, who is rumoured to be a target for Manchester United, remains grateful to former club Flamengo for giving him a platform to showcase his talent.
I come from Sao Goncalo, which is a very dangerous place, he said.
They always helped me when I didn t have money to pay for the academy and they let me train for a long time without paying.
My father went to work in Sao Paulo so that I would have money to train and play soccer.