Former Newcastle United assistant Terry McDermott has revealed how Bayern Munich once laughed at the north east club.
Back in 2008, Newcastle's 'cockney mafia' led by Magpies director of football Dennis Wise, vice-chairman Tony Jimenez, chief executive Derek Llambias and chief scout Jeff Vetere opted to sell James Milner to Aston Villa.
They said they had a replacement lined up in the former of Bayern and Germany star Bastian Schweinsteiger, who recently left Manchester United for MLS club Chicago Fire.
But it didn't quite go to plan.
“Kevin got a call from Jimenez saying the club had received a 'magnificent' offer from Aston Villa for James Milner," McDermott wrote in 'Terry Mac: Living For The Moment', serialised for the Daily Mirror.
“He was a good player who could do a job in a number of positions. Villa had offered £10million but Kevin insisted James was staying.
“We were flying down to London for the game (against Arsenal) when Kevin took a call from Jimenez saying the Villa offer had been increased to £12m.
“It was a decent offer, so Kevin asked who would they get to replace him. It would have to be someone really good because Milner was a crucial player.
“Jimenez said they had accepted the bid and that it looked like they could sign Bastian Schweinsteiger from Bayern Munich.
“Kevin said it was a no-brainer – just do it.
“Then Jimenez said that, as Kevin knew Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, who was on the board at Bayern, could he give him a ring?
“'What for?' he asked.
“'To ask if Schweinsteiger would be interested in coming to Newcastle,' he was told.
“Kevin was incensed.
“We were losing Milner but in reality had no replacement lined up. I told him it was a joke and Kevin replied: 'The swines have stitched us up.'
“After the conversation ended, I looked at Kevin and he was ashen-faced. We had lost a very good player with no suitable replacement.
“The club had hoodwinked him."