Mkhitaryan: I was close to signing for Liverpool
Manchester United’s Henrikh Mkhitaryan has spoken about how close he came to joining Liverpool.
In an interview with the Mail on Sunday, Mkhitaryan spoke of his early struggles in England after being left out of the side by Jose Mourinho.
The Armenian also spoke of his admiration for Jurgen Klopp, who developed him as a player at Borussia Dortmund.
“He was always next to you if there were playing problems or life problems. He is a good person,” Mkhitaryan said of Klopp.
“In particular, he helped me a lot because I was thinking too much about football.
“I took defeats too seriously, I’d obsess about any chances I missed.
“He told me that it’s just life and I had to let it go because when the next chance comes, I needed to be in the right frame of mind to take it.
“I learned to realise that everyone makes mistakes in life and you can’t worry on the pitch. You have to forget about it.”
On the subject of his potential move to Liverpool, Mkhitaryan said:
“I spoke two or three times on the phone to [Liverpool manager] Brendan Rodgers, he was saying he really wanted me and that I’d get to play with Luis Suarez and Steven Gerrard.
“Half of me thought I had to go there, the other half was not so confident, that the gap to the Premier League might be too big for a skinny player from the Ukrainian League.
“Two weeks later, Jurgen Klopp broke off his holiday on an island next to Denmark to come and see me in Dortmund.
“I knew he had a good reputation for working with younger players and, after we met, I felt more comfortable to sign for Dortmund. I think I made the right decision.”