World Cup winner Roberto Pires has revealed he once had an offer from Rangers as he hailed the club that “everyone knows in Europe”.
The Arsenal legend and France all-time great gave some insight into how he nearly wore the blue jersey as he promoted an international legends tournament taking place in Glasgow in January in which he will skipper a Rest of the World side at the Star Sixes.
Pires explained that ex-Rangers boss tried to persuade him to move north of the border after his Arsenal deal expired in 2006 but he opted to join Spanish club Villarreal instead.
He told the Scottish Sun: “In 2006 my manager spoke with someone from Rangers but I chose to go to Villarreal.
“I don’t know if it was a good choice but for me it was important because my mum is Spanish and it was important to see her son could play in La Liga.
“As a player it’s good when you receive offers from clubs such as Rangers. Everyone knows in Europe they are a very good club and especially in Scotland.
“It was an honour to receive this offer. It was at the time of Paul Le Guen. I had to make a decision and at that moment it was Spain and Villarreal.”
OPINION
Pires was 33 when he brought down the curtain on a glorious six-year spell at Arsenal. Who could blame Le Guen for trying to bring his countryman, a magician with the ball at his feet, to Ibrox? Missing out on such an illustrious talent would have been a blow for Rangers, as Pires still had plenty of years at the top despite being well into his 30s at that point. The winger who cut the best defences in the world to shreds when he was at his bewitching best went on to spend four years at Villarreal and accumulated 128 appearances for them. Of course, he was not as brilliant as he was at Arsenal, who saw the best of him during the Arsene Wenger glory years, but remained a magician whenever he was given space and time. It’s safe to say Pires, who could have walked into most sides in the world at his peak, would have run amok in Scotland, where the standard is not as high as it is in La Liga.