Carragher names the player Klopp wanted Liverpool to sign instead of Salah

Jamie Carragher has named the player that Jurgen Klopp wanted to sign ahead of Mohamed Salah.

It is widely believed though that the 31-year-old was not the player that Klopp wanted to sign at the time.

Liverpool legend Carragher has revealed on the Stick to Football podcast brought to you by Sky Bet, that Julian Brandt, then of Bayer Leverkusen, was the signing that Klopp desired.

Carragher claims the decision proves why managers shouldn't always get what they want in the transfer market.

The Sky Sports pundit said: 'When he initially came in, an interesting one was Mohamed Salah and Jurgen Klopp is open about this.

'He didn’t want to sign him, he wanted Julian Brandt. Liverpool had tried to sign Salah before he went to Chelsea and the people behind the scenes at Liverpool were still there and Salah then went to Roma, and they were very adamant that they had to sign this player.

'You look at what Mohamed Salah has done, but it could have easily gone the other way.

"I do feel that this idea that managers should buy every player isn’t right, but a manager shouldn’t have a player pushed on him.

'I don’t think a manager should just be able to do what he wants, you look at Manchester United and its worrying, it feels as if he’s [Erik ten Hag] just bought every player he knows.'

Liverpool's decision to go for Salah has certainly paid off, with the forward scoring 204 goals in 332 games, and playing a big part in their Champions League and Premier League triumphs since his arrival.

Brandt ultimately signed for Borussia Dortmund in 2019 and despite having a respectable career, has not come anywhere near the heights of Salah.

Since Salah signed for Liverpool, Brandt has scored 59 goals across all competitions and has never hit double digits in the Bundesliga.

In an interview with the Athletic in 2023, Brandt said: 'I had that chance to take that next step to join Liverpool, but the time wasn't right for me.

'I was aware that they were also looking at Mo Salah at the time. It's a shame because I would have loved to play for Kloppo.'