Jurgen Klopp wanted to hit out after a huge mistake about Liverpool’s icon in transfer talks

Sadio Mane’s move from Liverpool did not go as he would have liked.

Having won everything there was to win at Anfield, the 32-year-old cashed in on his Reds career two years ago in favor of a £35million move to Bavaria. But while he would go on to win the Bundesliga title in his first season in Germany, his maiden campaign ultimately proved disappointing.

The striker played 38 matches for Bayern, scoring 12 goals. However, he made just 25 Bundesliga appearances and 27 starts in all competitions as, unaided by injury, he failed to find his best form. A dressing room altercation with team-mate Leroy Sane would see the striker suspended for one game back, sparking suggestions he will move on.

Eventually, Mane would follow the influx of top footballers moving to Saudi Arabia by joining Al Nassr.

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Kopites beckoned to the heavy-hearted striker after seeing him score 120 goals during his six seasons on Merseyside to fire Liverpool back into the Champions League for the first time since 2009, before helping them win six trophies and be crowned champions. England, Europe and the world.

Aged 30 and with a year remaining on his contract, it was only a matter of time before the Reds had to consider a future without a striker. At least his shaky fortunes in Germany can leave Liverpool chiefs consoled that they enjoyed Mane’s peak years before selling him for a profit.

With Roberto Firmino already on the books, the Senegalese international was the second part of the Reds’ attacking puzzle when he signed from Southampton in the summer of 2016. With Mohamed Salah joining the following year, Jurgen Klopp created the top line front from Europe. who conquered everything before them.

Mane was actually Klopp’s first signing at Anfield as he looked to turn doubters into believers, brought in at the start of the German’s first full season at the club. And his desire to sign the Senegalese from Saints as he tries to bolster his attack stemmed from an earlier transfer blunder that left the Liverpool boss admitting he could have struck out on his own.

Having watched Mane’s progress since an impressive showing at the 2012 London Olympics, Klopp first considered signing Mane when he coached Borussia Dortmund and even held talks with the then RB Salzburg player about to a possible move to the Westfalenstadion in 2014. However, on occasion he decided the player was not for him before quickly realizing he had made a terrible mistake.

“I made a mistake,” Klopp said. “We met, we talked, but in the end I didn’t feel it. I like the player, it was more of a feeling.

“His baseball cap was askew, the blond streak he still has today. He looked like a rapper just to begin with. I thought, “I don’t have time for this.” I’d say I have a pretty good feel for people, but I’d be wrong!

“At Dortmund we could only get one player for this position, not two or three, so it had to be the perfect fit at the moment. About three months later I would have punched myself, so I already knew that the next chance I got, I would take it.

“It was a pretty simple decision with Sadio. When the club came this summer and Michael Edwards said we had an opportunity, no further discussion was necessary. It was a case of “Let’s do it”.

“Since I came here I have spoken to the staff a lot about him and I always felt he could be a very good signing for us. It would have been more expensive if we had taken him to Dortmund and then he would have been sold to Liverpool, so all good for Liverpool. The more I think about it, that was my first decision at Liverpool. That’s great!”

Dortmund’s loss was Liverpool’s gain as Klopp ensured he got his man in 2016, even stealing him from under Manchester United’s noses in the process. And the German would apologize to the striker in a secret phone call as he tried to convince him to join him at Anfield.

“I have to say I was very close to going to Manchester United,” Mane admitted in an interview telegraph when he was recalling his decision to join Liverpool. “I had the contract there. I had everything in agreement. Everything was ready.

“I still remember the first time I got the phone call from Klopp. I was watching tv. It was an action film – because I like films – and he said to me: “Sadio, listen, I want to explain to you what happened in Dortmund”.

“That was when he thought about signing me for Dortmund and for some reason it didn’t work out. He tried to explain and I said, “‘It’s okay, it happened.’ I forgave him. Then he said, “Now I want you at Liverpool.” And I said: “Okay, Dortmund is behind us, let’s focus on the future.”

Eight years after his failed move to Dortmund, Mane belatedly received a move to the Bundesliga, but only after enjoying his peak years at Liverpool under Klopp. And while the German would have inevitably preferred the striker to stay put at Anfield, at least he has managed to rectify the decision that left him wanting to punch himself all those years ago.

But while Mane will look to rediscover his best Reds form elsewhere, his chances of a move to a high-profile Premier League club appear to be in tatters. As much as Klopp wanted to kick himself for not signing the striker first time around, such an itch has been duly scratched by six trophy-laden years on Merseyside.

And even though the 32-year-old has returned to the Premier League and ended up haunting his former club, you can’t see new head coach Arne Slot kicking himself into not making a move.

A version of this article was first published in June 2022.