Midfielder with 51 goals & 46 assists opens up about Liverpool’s interest in signing him

Piotr Zielinski has revealed how close he came to joining Liverpool earlier in his career.

The Reds tried to sign him in 2016. The club had him flown in a private jet to meet with former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp at his house.

Zielinski was 22 at the time and had emerged as one of the most promising young midfielders in Europe after impressing during back-to-back seasons at Empoli, where he was on loan from Udinese.

Piotr Zielinski confirms Jurgen Klopp wanted to sign him

He has now revealed the details of his proposed move to the Merseyside giants and why it did not materialise.

In an interview with Foot Truck, he said:

“Jurgen Klopp invited me to his house. Liverpool sent a private jet to pick me up. Klopp told me that for him I am a mix between (Cesc) Fabregas and (Ilkay) Gundogan. I didn’t understand anything, but then my agent, who spoke German, told me everything.”

“When we were leaving I managed to take a photo with Klopp who was at the door and said goodbye. They were offering €18.5m, but Udinese wanted something more. However, Liverpool couldn’t cross a certain limit with me because I wasn’t a top player yet. The other side of the coin is that I didn’t feel like one either.”

Piotr Zielinski confirms Jurgen Klopp wanted to sign him at Liverpool. (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)
 
 

Liverpool signed Gini Wijnaldum instead

He ended up joining Napoli instead in August 2016, where he spent 8 years, making 364 appearances for them, scoring 51 and assisting 46 across all competitions.

Meanwhile, Liverpool ended up signing Gini Wijnaldum that summer from Newcastle United for £23m and he ended up becoming a key part of Jurgen Klopp’s team.

The Dutch midfielder made 237 appearances for the club, scoring 22 and assisting another 16. He very quickly became a fan favourite at the club and is fondly remembered for his contribution in Liverpool’s Champions League win against Barcelona, where he came off the bench to score two goals in 2 minutes to help the Reds beat the Spanish giants 4-0.

Despite being adored, Liverpool fans were left disappointed when he criticised the fans, saying he did not feel loved at the club when discussing his decision to move to PSG.