EPL: Why I snubbed move to Liverpool – Kylian Mbappe

Real Madrid forward, Kylian Mbappe, has revealed that he came close to signing for Liverpool.

With Mbappe set to leave Monaco in 2017, several top European clubs battled for his signature.

The Reds were very keen on the Frenchman and their manager at the time, Jurgen Klopp, set up a meeting with the player’s mother.

She also travelled to watch Liverpool matches in the UK and fell in love with the Premier League club.

But Mbappe ended up signing for Ligue 1 giants Paris Saint-Germain on an initial loan deal, but completing a permanent move one year later.

“I was close to Liverpool. My mum was a big fan of Jurgen Klopp and the favourite destination for my mum was Liverpool. She wanted me to go there,” Mbappe told The Athletic.

“I didn’t listen because I wanted to play in my city, Paris. I didn’t want to leave my country before I was someone. But yes, my mum was always saying, ‘Liverpool — you’re going to be there, playing at Anfield, it’s going to be insane for you.’ I was like, ‘OK!’

“She went there (for) the first step of the negotiations. She went to the city, the stadium, she met the people. She was like, ‘It’s a wonderful club, everybody’s so kind, it’s a family club, a big club.’

“She went to Anfield and fell in love with it. She watched a few games alone, to feel the atmosphere, because she wanted to imagine me in this stadium.

“All the time we were talking. ‘What do you think, Mum?’ She’d say, ‘For me, you have to go to Liverpool. I said, ‘OK, OK, OK!’ because Jurgen Klopp was an amazing manager. I met him and had a wonderful relationship with him. I had big respect for him.”