Mario Gotze has revealed why he turned down the chance to reunite with Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool in 2016.
Gotze was one of the stars of the show under Klopp during their time together at Borussia Dortmund, racking up 31 goals and 45 assists in 116 games under the German boss.
He made a controversial move to Bayern Munich for £33.3m in 2013 but endured a difficult three years with the German giants, struggling to hit the heights that many had expected of him.
By 2016 he found himself back on the market and looking for a new club, with Bayern keen to get rid and Gotze looking to give his career the kickstart that it needed at that point.
That saw him heavily linked with a move to Liverpool, where he could reunite with the manager who had gotten the best out of him at Dortmund and remained a big fan of him at that point.
Ultimately a move never happened, with Gotze electing to return to Borussia Dortmund instead, a deal that did not work out well for either party.
In hindsight, a move to Liverpool could have been the best for his career, and he’s now revealed the option was there.
“You have to imagine it like this: Where did I come from?” he told 11 Freunde, relayed by Fussball.news, who say he met Klopp in Liverpool to discuss a move.
“From Munich, where I had reached the semi-finals in the Champions League three times with Bayern. I wanted to do that again!
“Liverpool finished eighth in the league. In the situation at the time, the likelihood of winning the Champions League with Borussia seemed much greater.”
