Fabian Ruiz has been one of the biggest beneficiaries of Luis Enrique’s PSG era so far, with the Spaniard transforming himself from being a just another midfielder to a vital component in a team that has won two back to back Champions League titles.

Ruiz was also a part of the Spain team that secured the FIFA World Cup this past summer, even starting ahead of Barcelona star Pedri.

However, it wasn’t always like this and according to one of Ruiz’s former teammates, PSG did not even want to sign the Spanish midfielder in the first place.

Speaking to Corriere dello Sport, former Napoli defender Faouzi Ghoulam revealed the intriguing backstory behind Ruiz’s 2022 move to PSG, one that directly involved Real Madrid.

Ruiz has become one of Europe’s best midfielders at PSG. (Photo by Franco Arland/Getty Images)

“Fabian was at Napoli, and Ancelotti wanted to bring him back to Real Madrid. He had one year left on his contract, so he could leave for free.

“Real Madrid couldn’t make any signings at that time because they were trying to sign Mbappe before he renewed with PSG,” he said (h/t Mundo Deportivo ).

“PSG, knowing that Real Madrid wanted Fabian, signed him before Real Madrid could make their move. If we analyse Fabian’s beginnings at PSG, he wasn’t playing because they didn’t want him; they had signed him to undermine Real Madrid,” he added.