The goalkeeper stated that the Citizens' boss wanted to sign him but explained the reasons why the move ultimately fell through.
Nevertheless, he expressed his satisfaction about not leaving the Spanish top flight for the Premier League.
"We met here in Barcelona. It was crazy: I had to pick up someone else at the airport in the morning, but Pep came out too, with his cap on,” Ter Stegen said on BILD's Phrasenmaher podcast (h/t Sky Sport Germany).
“I saw him and didn't know what to do. We met that evening at a friend's apartment.
"The plan sounded very good; I could have seen myself there. Pep wanted to make everything possible, and the club was very committed to me."
Ter Stegen revealed that then-manager Luis Enrique objected to his departure."When he said we'd wait for the preseason—after two years—I almost got angry. I then spoke to the board. They also said: 'We're not letting you go under any circumstances.' The release clause at the time was €80 million.
Three weeks later, Claudio Bravo was at Man City. That was kind of strange. In the end, the transfer didn't happen, and I'm very happy about that."