I won the World Cup and could have joined Chelsea, but I'm actually a Liverpool fan and I really appreciate meeting Jon Flanagan.
When you win the World Cup you can't regret many things in your career.
Add the Champions League and Serie A to your list of triumphs and you have one hell of a list.
However, Brazil and AC Milan icon Cafu admits it would have been nice to spend some time in the Premier League.
The English top flight would have been lucky to have the right-back too, whose dynamism on the wing has earned him comparisons to an express train.
And so good was his time in Italy with Roma that a Premier League team tried, without success, to sign him.
“Chelsea made an official approach, but Rosella Sensi (Roma president at the time) told them: 'Forget about it, no one takes our boys from here and we are going to keep this team for a long time'”, Cafu told FourFourTwo.
“He said we were all his children. It would have been a nice experience to play in the Premier League – in 2001 it was already one of the biggest leagues at the time – but we couldn’t come to an agreement.”
A move to the Premier League would never materialise, but Cafu is unlikely to complain.
He eventually left Roma for AC Milan in 2003 and won Serie A in his first season before winning the Champions League in 2007.
This came at Liverpool's expense, but the Reds happen to be the Premier League team he has a huge soft spot for.
“I follow the Premier League and I love watching Kevin De Bruyne. He plays with such ease that it’s impressive,” says Cafu.
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“I'm a Liverpool fan,” he admits. “I've visited the club several times and I enjoy its history, the atmosphere of its stadium and its songs.”
One moment in particular also stood out for the iconic full-back.
“I even had the chance to meet Jon Flanagan, nicknamed 'the next Cafu', and we took a photo together. I still remember that day.”
However, Flanagan was forced to retire at the age of 29 due to recurring injuries following spells at Rangers, Charleroi and HB Koge.
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