Sir Alex Ferguson has revealed that Raúl could have been playing for Manchester United, against Schalke 04, in the Champions League semi-finals next Tuesday.
The veteran forward left Real Madrid last summer, and Ferguson insisted that the player's agent held talks with the club at the time.
But he claimed he was happy with Michael Owen, who has not started a single Premier League match this season, providing experienced cover and decided against the deal.
"We do prefer to sign young players as a rule but when you get an opportunity to sign experience like that you've got to have a look at it," Ferguson told a press conference. "You can make exceptions for certain players, because experience is so valuable.
"We thought the same when we signed Michael Owen, who has been a terrific professional for us, and bringing in Raúl would have been similar to when we managed to get Henrik Larsson for a short time a few years ago.
"It was obvious his time at Real Madrid had come to an end, and he certainly wasn't too old to be effective, as he has been showing in Germany.
"We spoke to his agent about a possible move but we already had Javier Hernández by then and, with Wayne Rooney, Dimitar Berbatov and Michael Owen available, we thought we could afford to let the chance pass.
"If we hadn't had Michael at the club at the time I might well have signed him."
In the end, Raúl - the top all-time marksman in the Champions League with 71 goals - opted to sign for Schalke and has led them to a semi-final showdown with United.
Ferguson added: "He's got loads of goals all over the place and I'm sure there's more in him.
"Raúl's got a fantastic goal record - 71 goals in the Champions League is an incredible record. I hope it stays at 71 for the next two weeks!"
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| Raúl celebrates after scoring against Inter Milan in the Champions League Photo: Reuters |
The veteran forward left Real Madrid last summer, and Ferguson insisted that the player's agent held talks with the club at the time.
But he claimed he was happy with Michael Owen, who has not started a single Premier League match this season, providing experienced cover and decided against the deal.
"We do prefer to sign young players as a rule but when you get an opportunity to sign experience like that you've got to have a look at it," Ferguson told a press conference. "You can make exceptions for certain players, because experience is so valuable.
"We thought the same when we signed Michael Owen, who has been a terrific professional for us, and bringing in Raúl would have been similar to when we managed to get Henrik Larsson for a short time a few years ago.
"It was obvious his time at Real Madrid had come to an end, and he certainly wasn't too old to be effective, as he has been showing in Germany.
"We spoke to his agent about a possible move but we already had Javier Hernández by then and, with Wayne Rooney, Dimitar Berbatov and Michael Owen available, we thought we could afford to let the chance pass.
"If we hadn't had Michael at the club at the time I might well have signed him."
In the end, Raúl - the top all-time marksman in the Champions League with 71 goals - opted to sign for Schalke and has led them to a semi-final showdown with United.
Ferguson added: "He's got loads of goals all over the place and I'm sure there's more in him.
"Raúl's got a fantastic goal record - 71 goals in the Champions League is an incredible record. I hope it stays at 71 for the next two weeks!"
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