The Reds have gained somewhat of a reputation for getting new recruits for their team, and Klopp’s squad has no shortage of players who have been pulling their weight since their arrivals. Since the team has been blessed with success over the past few years, it means they don’t need to flash the cash to have great players convinced to join the team.
Embed from Getty ImagesHowever, it hasn’t always been this way for Liverpool: with plenty of near-misses in the past, it can be good to have a retrospective glance at what could have been for the team – with that in mind, here are some players that almost made the switch to Liverpool but backed out at the final hurdle:
Embed from Getty ImagesNabil Fekir
The streets were alive with chatter that Fekir would be joining the Reds in 2019 – there were even pictures of him donning a Liverpool jersey and talks of a £53 million deal which was struck to get him on the team. But, to the surprise of fans, all of these rumours ended up amounting to nothing!
Embed from Getty Images Embed from Getty ImagesWhen asked about the signings in 2021, Fekir said he had no clue why Liverpool didn’t sign him – he did the medical for them, and they backed out because of an alleged ‘bad knee’, which Fekir contested the credibility of. The wonky medical check at the Reds didn’t pan out to be too much of a blow for Fekir, however, since he managed to find his place in La Liga as a key player for Betis.
Embed from Getty Images Embed from Getty ImagesDele Alli
Once considered the next big thing because of his chops in his performances with England, plenty of fans were disappointed to see Alli battle it out against relegation in the 2021/2022 season – it didn’t always have to be this way, though!
Embed from Getty Images Embed from Getty ImagesIn 2014, when Alli’s name was stirring around the football world, Rogers was talking about grabbing the star-studded player for The Reds. However, with the prospect of first-team minutes and Pochettino’s guidance at Tottenham, Alli instead signed with Spurs in 2015.
Embed from Getty Images Embed from Getty ImagesLoic Remy
Much like Fekir, Remy was deep into talks with Liverpool and had his medical all checked out before his withdrawal from The Reds – it seems their doctors have an over-cautious mentality for safety since their medical check-up on Remy revealed that he may have heart issues which could cause him to give up football – this gave the team cold feet on Remy, and he was out!
Embed from Getty Images Embed from Getty ImagesChelsea’s medical team, on the other hand, were happy to have Remy on board – and we’re sure they’re glad that they neglected his health issues as Remy bagged the League Cup and Premier League within his first season with the team.
Embed from Getty Images Embed from Getty ImagesGabriel Heinze
In the aftermath of Liverpool’s narrow loss in the 2007 Champions League final, former Liverpool manager Benitez had his eyes set on Heinze as the perfect defence to bring the team to victory next year – but the notorious hard head Alex Ferguson of Manchester United wasn’t happy about his player getting scouted.
Also, due to the rivalry that the two north-west behemoths of English Football have had in the modern age, no player has swapped sides since 1964! So Ferguson wasn’t about to end that, as he could see Benitez trying to mount an assault on United’s status as the best team in the country.
Embed from Getty Images Embed from Getty ImagesFerguson said that Liverpool had come up with a couple of offers for Heinze, but he was firm on keeping him. However, Heinze was told that he could leave Man United if a club offered him £6.8 million, which Liverpool did.
It seemed that Heinze took fate into his own hands and wrote to the premier league to have him freed from the fiery grips of Ferguson, and he did end up managing to escape – it wasn’t Liverpool where he ended up finding his home, but Real Madrid, which some may say is just as good as an alternative!
Embed from Getty Images Embed from Getty Images