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Zlatan Ibrahimovic reveals why he rejected a move to Manchester City

Zlatan Ibrahimovic has revealed that he turned down a transfer to Manchester City in 2010.

The Swedish striker, who scored 29 goals in 53 appearances during a 21-month spell at Manchester United, told the Daily Mirror that he had the chance to join his future club's city rivals at the start of the decade.

“I had the chance to go to Manchester City when I was at Barcelona but after that moment in Barcelona, I needed to find happiness,” he said.

"Going back to Italy, I was happy in Italy and I knew I would be happy if I go back. I didn’t know if I would be happy if I go to City because it’s a different challenge.

“It would have been a new club, which Milan also was. But I knew the city because I had three years at Inter, I knew the country, so I took a little bit of a safe card.”

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Greg Lea

Greg Lea is a freelance football journalist who's filled in wherever FourFourTwo needs him since 2014. He became a Crystal Palace fan after watching a 1-0 loss to Port Vale in 1998, and once got on the scoresheet in a primary school game against Wilfried Zaha's Whitehorse Manor (an own goal in an 8-0 defeat).