Juande Ramos admits he tried to sign Manchester City winger Adam Johnson while in charge of Real Madrid.
In his column for the Independent, former Tottenham boss Ramos revealed: "When I became Real Madrid coach in December, 2008 we needed to sign a wide player in the winter transfer window, and it raised a few eyebrows when I said I wanted a winger from Middlesbrough who no-one had ever heard of.
"In the end we did not get Adam Johnson, but I was not surprised when he moved on to Manchester City and had a good first half-season.
"He was a player that caught my eye when I coached in England and he would not have been out of place at the Bernabeu, just as now he looks the part at Eastlands.
"It is too easy to say now, with the benefit of hindsight, that he should have gone to South Africa, but I'm sure he will play his part from now on and give people reason to believe in a bright future."
