я сказал им, чтобы они

I told them to

→ я
phrase Uncommon #18,409
I told them to Used to report a command or request. Usually followed by a verb in the past tense in Russian, but the English translation is often "to + verb".
RU: Я сказал им, чтобы они подождали меня.
EN: I told them to wait for me.