Capello Reveals How He Signed Roberto Carlos For Real Madrid In 24 Hours

Fabio Capello was the coach at the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu when Roberto Carlos signed for Real Madrid in the summer of 1996 and the Italian has revealed how that transfer came about.

The left-back had been at Inter, but was being played out of position and wasn’t happy.

When Capello learned that the player and the club were willing to accept a transfer, he pounced at the opportunity.

“I couldn’t believe it,” Capello explained on Sky Italia.

“Giovanni Branchini told me they were going to sell him and I thought ‘how can Inter be about to sell Roberto Carlos?’.

“Because I didn’t believe it, they sent me a fax with the price and it wasn’t an unquestionable sum, so I called the Real Madrid president Lorenzo Sanz and told him to fly straight to Milan. I explained that all Italian teams would go for him once the news got out.

“By 23:00, the contract was ready. In less than 24 minutes.”

Capello then made a joke about Roberto Carlos’ current physical state, as he enjoys life as a pundit.

“I wouldn’t have signed him if he were as fat as he is now!” the Italian said.