RB Leipzig manager Ralf Rangnick has claimed he turned down the opportunity to sign Jamie Vardy two years ago because he considered the Leicester forward to be too old.

Vardy has helped spearhead Leicester's unlikely Premier League title challenge this season, scoring 22 goals in 34 matches in only his second year in the top flight.

But the 29-year-old may have been playing in the second tier of German football had Rangnick not refused to sign players over a certain age.

"We desperately wanted to sign Joe Gomez, who later chose Liverpool, and we were flying back from London to Leipzig with his agent," Rangnick, who also acts as Leipzig sporting director, told Sport Bild magazine.

"In the plane, the agent said to me 'Mr Rangnick, it's a crying shame that you are so radical about who you sign and only go for players who are under 24 because I've got somebody who would be just perfect for you. I can guarantee he would become a national team player under you, but he's already 27'.

"It was Jamie Vardy."

Rangnick recalled himself replying: "No, he's 27 - we're not doing it."

Jamie Vardy has played a leading role in Leicester's charge towards the Premier League title

Vardy instead stayed with Leicester, scoring five goals in his debut campaign in the Premier League, helping the club avoid relegation.

Since then, Vardy has improved immeasurably and is now an England international.

He has scored two goals in six appearances for his country and looks certain to be included in Roy Hodgson's squad for this summer's European Championships in France.

Vardy scored in England's most recent friendly matches against Germany and the Netherlands

Leipzig, who are backed by Austrian billionaire Dietrich Mateschitz, are on course for promotion to the Bundesliga.