Jurgen Klopp: £52m Liverpool transfer nearly scuppered Alisson deal as original Loris Karius plan revealed | OneFootball

Brazilian was brought in to replace Loris Karius following the 2018 Champions League final

The Brazilian arrived on Merseyside in the summer of 2018 from Italian club AS Roma for a reported £65m transfer fee. He has since established himself as one of the best goalkeepers in the world whilst playing a huge role in the Reds’ success.

However, the Reds only received the green light to sign Alisson after a deal for then-Lyon attacking midfielder Nabil Fekir collapsed.

To this day it is still unclear as to why Liverpool pulled out of a reported £52m deal for Fekir, but Klopp has revealed the finances involved means the club were only able to afford one.

Speaking as part of the club’s docuseries ‘Alisson: My Story’. Klopp said: “We all know the story around the Champions League final. We had to estimate, to judge, how [Karius] would deal, how the public would deal with that.

“We were all hoping he could become stronger after that, maybe it can be a turning point into a good direction.

“But then all of a sudden we heard then that Ali is on the market.

“It was my absolute dream. When you dream or think about the team, you set it up from the back. And that was the moment we said ‘OK, we have to try it’.

“The interesting part is that we were close to signing Fekir. And if we sign Fekir, we don’t have the money for Ali.

“It was obviously a pretty important decision for the future of LFC!”

The decision has worked in Liverpool’s favour as Alisson has been integral to the club winning two Premier League titles and the Champions League during his seven full seasons.

As for Fekir, he was part of the France squad that won the 2018 World Cup. He moved to Real Betis the following summer, spending five full seasons with the LaLiga side before joining UAE Pro League outfit Al Jazira Club last August.