Reading legend Steve Sidwell revealed that he had a special clause in his contract which saw him open talks with Manchester City.

Box-to-box midfielder Sidwell became a star while at Reading, becoming a highly-sought after player following the Royals' eighth-place Premier League finish.

Ultimately moving to Chelsea on a free transfer in 2007, Sidwell has revealed on the popular Peter Crouch podcast that a £2m clause in his contract allowed him to open talks with Manchester City.

Certainly not the giants they are now, finishing 14th in Reading's debut Premier League campaign, the Citizens were an established top-flight side and have since gone on to win eight Premier League titles.

"I had a clause in the Reading contract that if a club bid anything over £2m they would allow me to speak to the club," Sidwell revealed. "That was in there for four years. It was only a couple of years in and Man City bid £2m and one pound, a bit of a p**s t***e.

"They said it was okay so we went and spoke to them and half-negotiated figures, but Reading said we have it in the contract that you can speak to them, now they have to come in with a bid we’d accept- they wanted £5m.

"So, although it was in the contract that I could speak to a club if the bid was over £2m, they didn’t want to sell unless it was over £5m. They’re clever."

Departing with almost 200 club appearances under his belt, the midfielder remained in the Premier League for the next decade.