Fraudster: Jonathan Reuben, 56, stole £120,000 from Premier League footballer David Silva and Manuel Pellegrini

A fraudster who stole £120,000 from Premier League footballer David Silva and his former boss Manuel Pellegrini was only caught when the ex-Manchester City manager had his card declined at restaurant.

Jonathan Reuben, 56, posed as Spain international Silva, who is 31 - wearing just a cap as a disguise - to withdraw over £20,000 in cash from banks in Greater Manchester.

Days later, Pellegrini, 63, found out he was the victim of a £130,000 worth of frauds after he tried to pay for a meal and had his card refused.

Manchester Crown Court heard Reuben, from Birmingham, not only took £100,000 in cash from Pellegrini's accounts, but tried to pay for a £27,000 watch at the Trafford Centre using a card he had obtained in his name.

After his arrest, Reuben - also known as Jonathon Davies - claimed he didn't feel bad about targeting football professionals because 'they could afford it'.

Midfielder Silva and Hebei China Fortune coach Pellegrini have both been reimbursed by their bank - but it is not known where the money went.

At the time of the scam Reuben was serving a 14 week suspended sentence for posing as a company director in another £14,000 fraud.

Now he has been jailed for 20 months after admitting three counts of fraud against Pellegrini and Silva, and ordered to serve the breached 14 week sentence on top.

Sentencing, Judge Patrick Field QC told Reuben: 'Simply because Mr Silva and Mr Pellegrini are wealthy individuals does not provide you or anyone else with an excuse for stealing from them.

Reuben (left), 56, posed as Spain international Silva (right), who is 31 - wearing just a cap as a disguise - to withdraw over £20,000 in cash from banks in Greater Manchester

'These were unpleasant offences, they undoubtedly caused distress and upset to both gentlemen and I have little doubt that they caused embarrassment when Mr Pellegrini found his card was refused by a restaurant.'

Prosecutor Tim Greenald said Silva's bank account was 'deliberately targeted by fraudsters' in September 2015.

An unknown caller pretended to be Silva in telephone contact with his bank, passing identity verification controls, before ordering a replacement card and a pin reminder. The card and the reminder were sent to Silva's home - but somehow intercepted.

Reuben, the frontman for the scam, then went to four branches of Mr Silva's bank - at Wigan, Bolton, Bury and Prestwich - and used the card to make £20,950 in withdrawals from cashiers and machines.

Mr Greenald said: 'He purported to be Mr Silva, he signed the new card that had been sent out and identified himself as Mr Silva. Mr Reuben was wearing a cap, but apart from that there was no other attempt at disguise.'

Silva found out about the transactions days later from text alerts.

Manchester Crown Court heard Reuben not only took £100,000 in cash from Pellegrini's (pictured) accounts, but tried to pay for a £27,000 watch at the Trafford Centre using a card he had obtained in his name

He was promptly reimbursed, but told police that the 'whole incident was very unpleasant', the court heard.

Pellegrini's account was targeted two days after Silva found out.

A conman rang Pellegrini's bank claiming to him, passed the bank's security checks, and then ordered a replacement debit card, cancelling the one that Pellegrini held.

Somehow they also obtained Pellegrini's pin number before intercepting the card. Reuben then used it on 23 occasions, signing withdrawal slips in Pellegrini's name in branches in Oldham, Rochdale and Liverpool.

Money was also swapped between Pellegrini's accounts in telephone calls by an imposter, allowing Reuben to take £98,650 in cash from the manager.

Mr Greenald added: 'On October 3 Mr Pellegrini attempted to use his debit card to pay for a meal in a restaurant. That transaction was declined because at the time, unbeknown to him, a replacement card had been sent out and the existing one cancelled.'

Four days after that Reuben went into Goldsmiths in the Trafford Centre and tried to pay for a £26,450 watch using the card he had in Pellegrini's name. However the transaction was refused and he handed himself into police after they circulated his image as 'wanted'.

Max Saffman, defending Reuben, appealed for a suspended sentence in his case, saying crooks he was indebted to forced him into it. 'There was a degree of coercion - his role was to take the cards, go into the banks for no more than five minutes, withdraw the cash and return it to those waiting outside', Mr Saffman said.

'His best years are behind him - he would say his criminal years are behind him also. He says to me he's too old for prison.'

Simply because Mr Silva and Mr Pellegrini are wealthy individuals does not provide you or anyone else with an excuse for stealing from them Judge Patrick Field QC

Mr Saffman also claimed Mr Reuben was sole carer for his cousin, who suffered from multiple sclerosis.

Sentencing, Judge Field rejected Reuben's claim that he had coerced into the fraud by other criminals.

'This was undoubtedly a sophisticated, premeditated and well-organised fraud, a fraud that was clearly carried out bu am accomplished team of fraudsters, of which you were an essential part', the judge said.

'The CCTV shows what is undoubtedly the case, namely an accomplished fraudster going about his everyday work.'

Detective Sergeant David Henshall of GMP's City of Manchester Team, said: 'Davies showed extreme audacity throughout his illegitimate spending spree, purporting to be other people, defrauding them out of thousands of pounds.

'He will now spend almost two years behind bars, unable to continue his deceitful and dishonest ways.

'Fraud can and does have devastating consequences and those who benefit at the demise of others, like Davies, will be brought to justice.'