United, Barcelona were interested in me: Lahm

German football giant Bayern Munich captain Philipp Lahm revealed that Premier League heavyweight Manchester United and Spanish club Barcelona were interested in signing him, adding that his decision to stay at Bundesliga proved to be the right one.

"As a player you always think about your options and there was a time when Manchester United made an approach for me, and Barcelona looked at me too, so I considered life in England or Spain. The Premier League was an interesting possibility," Lahm was quoted as saying by goal.com on Monday.

When asked to define the differences and similarities between Bayern coach Pep Guardiola and German national team coach Joachim Low, the newly turned midfielder said, "There are far more similarities than differences. They are both very calm for starters. They're not big on ranting and raving, but you can't mistake that for not being determined."

"The motivation is extremely strong in both of them. Most of all they are both winners. That drive to win is intense in both of them. They both think very, very deeply about the game. They are tactically brilliant. They both believe in youth. I'm privileged to have played for both of them."

Speaking about his transition from defence to midfield, the 31-year-old said, "I am happy with how things have worked out for me. I played at full-back for 10 years, I enjoyed it, and I had success there, so I can never regret being a defender. But then there was the chance to do something new, to move into midfield and I was excited by the possibility."