Salomon Rondon has revealed he came desperately close to joining Manchester United in January.
The former Newcastle striker was a target for United who were searching for a striker as Premier League clubs targeted the Chinese Super League during the initial outbreak of the coronavirus.
But Dalian Professional blocked the move and United ended up signing Odion Ighalo from Shanghai Greenland Shenhua instead.
Rondon said: “The chance was very close to come back to England.
"The owner of my club said that they paid a lot for me, he wanted me to stay and didn’t want to let me go. He said: ‘It’s not in our minds to let you go.’
“I talked to Rafa and then they chose another player, it finished and I didn’t have any chance to go.
"I stayed and I take that experience with me in my life, in my career and I have to wait because I’ve signed for two years and if I stay for two years it doesn’t matter for me.
“My agents didn’t say too much. They said they’d call me if they had some news but the opportunity to go was really, really close and the decisions are with the owners.
“It was a good opportunity for me to come back to Europe but I stayed in China and then we will see what happens in the future.
“I enjoyed England a lot, I followed the Premier League a lot, my children now speak better English than me!
"It’s a very good thing for me and it was a big opportunity for me and my family.”
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