Van Nistelrooy was set to leave United after a feud with manager Sir Alex Ferguson and held talks with Bayern Munich, but ended up joining Real Madrid.
“We were already in advanced talks in the summer of 2006 and I was all ready to sign a deal with Bayern. I would have joined Munich if Real Madrid didn’t make an approach for me then,” said Van Nistelrooy to Bild.
“It was pretty difficult to abandon the deal with Bayern in that stage of the transfer talks. I personally contacted Uli Hoeness to explain the situation and to apologise. I told him that I couldn’t say no to Real Madrid.
“In hindsight, I’m glad that I decided to snub Bayern for Madrid. I had an amazing time in Spain and have never regretted the move.”
