Iconic Romanian football boss Mircea Lucescu admits he he tried to buy Rangers star Ianis Hagi after previously shaming his dad into a career best run.
The Dynamo Kiev boss is now 75 and has been a manager for a staggering 42 years in Romania, Italy, Turkey, Ukraine and Russia.
He signed Gheorghe Hagi when he was in charge of Serie A high-fliers Brescia in a big-money move from Real Madrid and he eventually moved to Barcelona from the Italian club.
And Lucescu, who has been in charge of clubs including Inter Milan, Galatasaray, Shakhtar Donetsk and Zenit St Petersburg as well as Turkey, has revealed he tried to sign Hagi junior too as he claimed the credit for inspiring Hagi's senior famous World Cup displays in 1994.
Speaking about the Rangers star, he said: "You can rest assured that Ianis will pull the trigger that everyone is waiting for and becoming huge.
"He bears the immense burden of his name. I had the same situation with my son, Razvan and that's why I wanted him to be a keeper so he wouldn't constantly be compared with me.
"Ianis needed a manager like me earlier in his career who knew how to work with young talent like him.
"I tried to sign him, but he was too expensive and I couldn't afford him.
"Let's not forget that his father Gheorghe Hagi's performances for Romania in the USA World Cup were down to me.
"I took him to Brescia from Real Madrid and I humiliated him. I called him fat and relegated him to the reserves to see if his pride would accept it.
"And the results were his performances in America."
