Juventus midfielder Andrea Pirlo admits he came close to signing for Chelsea after the 2006 World Cup.

Pirlo left AC Milan for Juve two years ago.

The 33-year-old told Voetbal Primeur: "I had already reached an agreement with Chelsea, but (Silvio) Berlusconi intervened and I stayed at AC Milan.

"I was also very close to a move to Real Madrid in 2006, when coach (Fabio) Capello was there. And (Pep) Guardiola approached me in 2011 to convince me to go to Barcelona, but again it was Berlusconi who put a stop to it."