Agent: Man Utd wanted Chelsea signing Makelele

The agent of Chelsea midfielder Claude Makelele has revealed Manchester United tried to sign the Frenchman over the summer.

Marc Roger confirmed: "Yes, it's true, United absolutely wanted Claude. Ferguson pulled out all the stops and dreamed of including Claude in the deal for David Beckham."

"I don't know how they did it, but Real forced United to give up on this idea even though they were ready to pay £8 million."

Roger claims this is the fee Real verbally agreed to sell Makelele, telling to The Sun: "Perez took the £10 million fee Real had paid Celta Vigo for Claude, took something off for the seasons he had spent with them and proposed £8 million as a negotiating basis."

He added: "The Madrid board were too smug unfortunately. They thought they had done the hard part in controlling those clubs with, first, Inter Milan and then United."

"They thought they could sicken everyone, including Claude."

"They believed, too, that no one would return to the attack, but that was counting without Chelsea."