Owen: Chelsea wanted me

Owen Hargreaves today revealed that Chelsea tried to sign him from Bayern Munich this summer.

The England midfielder has established himself as a regular in the Bayern team this season, playing in yesterday's Champions League win over Celtic, and the club rejected Chelsea's approach out of hand.

A move to England may have boosted Hargreaves's chances of claiming a starting berth for England but he is happy to stay in the Bundesliga.

Hargreaves said: "Bayern told me it wasn't possible. I was quite happy about that because I want to play in this team and they really need me here, but it's good to know that there's a market for me."

Chelsea manager Claudio Ranieri signed five midfielders in his £110million spending spree this summer, but Hargreaves's disclosure raises the prospect that he may not have got his first choice players.

Earlier this month Roma president Franco Sensi revealed that he had turned down a £25m bid for Brazilian midfielder Emerson.