The summer transfer window proved pivotal for the Reds last year with them managing to bring in Thiago Alcantara from Bayern Munich, Diogo Jota from Wolves, and Kostas Tsimikas for a combined £71.73 million – a good bit of business from the club overall.
As many of us Liverpool faithful know, the deal for Diogo Jota almost came out of thin air and was not expected by any of the fans when the interest for the Portuguese forward was first revealed, with him announced as a new signing just one day after the Reds’ interest was confirmed by the media.
It turns out there was a valid reason for this – Liverpool already had a deal for another winger at the time, Sadio Mané’s fellow countryman Ismaila Sarr.
According to the player’s agent when speaking to PanAfricanFootball, Liverpool already had a deal almost finalised for the winger with him agreeing on personal terms, salary, and even the length of his contract with Mané even in the process of helping him find a place to live on Merseyside.
Was Diogo Jota Liverpool's best signing in the summer?
Yes
No
The missing factor that ultimately led to the collapse of the deal was the final price to pay to Watford – with them wanting £35 million for the 22-year-old winger, a price that Liverpool didn’t feel was exemplary of Sarr’s services.
This factor ultimately led to the Reds pulling out of the deal which then saw Jurgen Klopp and his team target Jota and in fast fashion too – with the turn around between the start of the discussions and the player putting pen to paper for the Reds just two days.
Although Liverpool paid just over £40 million for the forward, a fee higher than the one proposed by Watford, Liverpool felt an extra £5 million for Jota was more worth it due to having more experience in the Premier League as well as the fact he is a versatile forward who can operate in a number of attacking roles and it clearly turned out to be the right decision – with Jota hitting the ground running on his Reds career.
What do you think Liverpool fans, would Sarr have been a better signing than Jota? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section down below…