Joe Manganiello reveals lengthy mission to date Sofia Vergara, told to ‘Go get her!’

IT WASN’T merely fate that brought Joe Manganiello and Sofia Vergara, together. The Magic Mike XXL star reveals it took some plotting and planning.

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IT WASN’T merely fate that brought Joe Manganiello and Sofia Vergara, together. The Magic Mike XXL star reveals it took some plotting and planning.

“I’ve had a crush on Sofia for years,” he reveals. “Actually, all my friends knew about it to the point where just before she was to announce she was going to be single again [after she broke up with then-fiance Nick Loeb] my friend, the editor of People magazine told me before he was to release a public statement to the masses.

“So he sent it to me first to warn me that there’s going to be a line of guys going after her. He wrote to me, ‘I want you to get there first. Go get her!’”

The 38-year-old hunk knew he had to act quickly. “So I got her number from Jesse Tyler Ferguson [Vergara’s Modern Family co-star] and I called her the next day but she was filming Hot Pursuit in New Orleans.”

Undeterred, the 38-year-old star was on a mission. “So I flew out there and took her out on a date. She’s blamed me ever since for ruining her life because she was supposed to be single,” he grins. “But I didn’t let that happen. And here we are.”

Where they are exactly is living in their newly bought $US2 million Hollywood Hills home planning their wedding. The couple announced their engagement on Christmas Day last year after dating for five months.

Ever the romantic, the darkly handsome actor of Italian descent went all out for the Colombian star. “I realised that if I was going to marry a Colombian woman, I wanted to propose in Spanish. I was fantastic at it when I was in high school but that was 20 years ago and I forgot it,” he said.

“So I rehearsed a big speech. The last thing you want to do is mess up that moment. I wanted to make sure it was perfect. It had to be absolutely right.”

It’s not often a man will be quite so effusive, but he is clearly smitten. “What makes her beautiful? Of course you could go on forever about her looks, which is a given. And Colombians don’t age. They’re like a whole different species. But she’s so smart, she’s so funny, so witty and has such a big heart,” he gushed about the 42-year-old sex symbol.

“She genuinely cares about people and she’s someone that could get away in life without having all those qualities. It’s almost like that’s despite how she looks and that’s incredibly attractive to me. She’s such a strong woman yet perfectly marries that strength with this obvious femininity.” He shakes his head in amazement at winning her over.

“She hadn’t seen any of my work and she thought I’d be a complete idiot, just a big dumb meat-head,” he recalls.

Like Vergara, his appearance also belies a charm and intelligence.

When Vergara spoke to news.com.au recently, she joked that he was too good looking, which she initially found off-putting. He says, “Well, so much for that. I guess I’m not that good looking”.

How does the dynamic between them work?

“Our lives are crazy, our jobs are crazy but we’re very grounded people and that’s the cornerstone of our relationship. We’re just normal people who enjoy getting away from it all. We always try to carve out a space where we can be ourselves.”

Now with their upcoming nuptials (date to be confirmed), he had to meet his future in-laws, always an intimidating prospect. “Meeting the family is a bit like throwing a baby in the swimming pool. And in Sofia’s case, there are about a hundred of them.”

He breathes a sigh of relief. “But they’re wonderful, friendly, warm people and I’m very happy they’re going to be my family. I haven’t been to Colombia yet but they flew to Miami to meet us (the midway point for the LA-based couple). We had a big dance party; it was a lot of fun.”

Today in Los Angeles he’s sporting a beard. “It’s for my next role, which I can’t talk about yet,” he says. “But I actually like the beard.” It seems his thoughts are never far from his significant other, and offers, “And Sofia likes it too”.

What makes this ultimate sexy symbol feel sexy?

“The adoring look from someone who loves you.”