AC Milan's general manager Adriano Galliani has revealed the club tried to sign Francesco Totti as a youngster, but says it would have been "impossible" to persuade the striker to leave Roma.
Totti, 38, has scored 293 goals in 718 appearances for Roma, and captains the club with which he has spent his whole playing career.
Many teams -- including the Rossoneri -- have tried and failed to prise the forward award from the Giallorossi, though Galliani has praised the striker's devotion to his club as a rarity in the modern game.
"Of course we tried to sign Francesco when he was a lad," he said. "But we realised immediately that it was going to be impossible to make him leave Roma.
"I think Francesco did right to stay there -- it's great to see a champion like him starting out as a kid and staying in the same club for his entire career, in his city and at the club he always supported.
"Totti represents for Roma what [Franco] Baresi and [Paolo] Maldini were for us."
That love for the Giallorossi shows no boundaries, although Juventus' general manager Beppe Marotta, while recognising Totti's qualities and values, said the forward still overstepped the line earlier this season with his claims that the Bianconeri are favoured in Serie A.
"He's a champion and a heritage of our football," he said. "He's certainly a big rival and continues to cause problems to defences, but his comments, as we have already said, were unacceptable."
ESPN FC correspondent Ben Gladwell contributed to this report.