Manchester City defender Martin Demichelis has revealed he came close to returning to River Plate in the summer.
Demichelis, 35, who joined City from Atletico Madrid in 2013, signed a new contract with the club in March.
However, he admits to nearly leaving the Etihad Stadium ahead of the current campaign for the club where he started his professional career, only for the move to fall through.
"Some things happened to me in Man City, so I had this dream about moving back to River for this season," he is quoted as saying by the Manchester Evening News.
"It's the club where I started to play. But I have to respect the coach Marcelo Gallardo, who decided to keep playing with his players and didn't hire me.
"I truly wanted to play for River, you know. I even talked with River's general manager Enzo Francescoli and told him that I wanted to move back to River for this season.
"I texted him and told him that I wanted to play for them. It can be even said that I had my luggage packed and ready to move back to River."