Mkhitaryan admits Liverpool snub

Henrik Mkhitaryan has admitted he came close to signing for Liverpool before joining Borussia Dortmund.

After a very slow start to his Manchester United career, the Armenian has impressed in recent matches and is expected to be one of his side's biggest threats as they welcome bitter rivals Liverpool to Old Trafford on Sunday afternoon.

But the 27-year-old could have been playing for the visitors if things had gone slightly differently with Jurgen Klopp, then in charge at Dortmund, playing a key role in him snubbing Liverpool's advances.

“I spoke two or three times on the phone to [then Liverpool manager] Brendan Rodgers, he was saying he really wanted me and that I’d get to play with Luis Suarez and Steven Gerrard," he told the Mail on Sunday.

“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.

“He was always next to you if there were playing problems or life problems. He is a good person.

“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."

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