Former Manchester City forward Robinho told him the club’s owner said he was going to sign Lionel Messi from Barcelona.
In an interview with the Daily Mail, Robinho revealed what the club’s plans had been, but said they could not pull it off.
"I spoke a few times with the owner Sheikh Mansour," Robinho told the Mail.
"He told me he was going to go big to get Kaka and Lionel Messi. Kaka was close. But Messi... I think Messi was beyond them.
"But I believed in the project. The Sheikh had the ambition to create the best team in the world and now look at them. They have the best manager in the world in Pep Guardiola and can go toe-to-toe with anyone."