Former Borussia Dortmund star claims ‘Liverpool would have been better’ for him
World Cup winner Mario Gotze admits he should’ve chosen a move to Liverpool over Borussia Dortmund in 2016.
He made his breakthrough in the Borussia Dortmund first team in the 2010-11 season before announcing himself on the international stage by scoring the winning goal in the 2014 World Cup final.
Gotze then joined Bundesliga rivals Bayern Munich for three seasons before making his return to Dortmund in 2016, snubbing a move to Liverpool with Jurgen Klopp.
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The Germany international has moved back to the Bundesliga ahead of the new season with Eintracht Frankfurt after a two-year spell at Eredivisie side PSV Eindhoven.
And in an interview with SportBild (via Sport Witness) Gotze has explained his reasons for snubbing a move to join up with former boss Klopp at Liverpool.
“Liverpool had finished eighth in their first season with Jürgen and had not qualified for the Champions League. Even in previous years, it wasn’t the club that always played at the top,” Gotze said.
“Dortmund had previously played a top season under Thomas Tuchel. BVB was on the up. Jürgen was still building something. In retrospect you have to say: Liverpool would have been better.”
It is not the first time that Gotze has expressed his regret over his choice to reject Liverpool with the German calling it the “wrong decision”.
“We are still in touch and we spoke back then about me coming to Liverpool,” Gotze told the Daily Mail. “But I wasn’t in a state of mind where I could consider it, that’s why it didn’t happen.
“Do I regret it? It’s always difficult to look back but if you ask me now then yeah, I should have joined Liverpool for sure. I just made a wrong decision but it’s not a regret.”
Former Netherlands international Rene van der Gijp mocked Gotze over his comments at the time claiming he “would never have played” for Liverpool.
“I really thought that he had a very good image of himself,” Van der Gijp said earlier this year on Today Inside.
“That he thinks: I will play in the Netherlands; I am only seventy per cent fit. And then I’ll be fine, against the NECs of this world.
“But recently, I heard that he would rather have chosen Liverpool. Then I think: Yes, goddamn, you would never have played there, man.
“With Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mané. Then I think: Jesus, how can you say that?”
