Madrid, June 6 (IANS/EFE) Barcelona's Spanish defender Gerard Pique was overheard telling Vicente del Bosque, coach of the Spanish national team, that his side's midfielder Cesc Fabregas's deal is already sealed for 33 million euros.
The confession came in the middle of a press conference and was unintentionally recorded Thursday, reports Xinhua.
"I defended Cesc a bit. He told me it is all done. He is going, 33 million he told me," pique said, according to Spanish sports daily AS.
Del Bosque replied, saying: "The president (Josep Maria Bartomeu) isn't going to be happy... bloody hell, you're going to have... You are going to drive him mad, poor thing."
Pique did not reveal Fabregas' next destination but news reports said that Manchester United and Chelsea are interested in him.
Fabregas left Barcelona when he was 16 years old to join Arsenal but came back in 2011.
According to recent reports, Fabregas is close to going back to the English Premier League with Manchester City having entered the race to sign the player.
However, his previous club, Arsenal, withdrew from the race and turned down a chance to sign Fabregas who is available for 37 million euros.
British press recently reported that Fabregas is available for bid from Manchester City, Manchester United and Arsenal whose shirt Fabregas wore for eight years.
Apparently manager Arsene Wenger decided that he is not in need for Fabregas, as he already has more than one player in the same position.
Manchester City may be the closest team to sign the Spaniard after Yaya Toure recently announced that he wants to leave the Etihad stadium because the club did not congratulate him on his birthday.
--IANS/EFE
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