Barcelona reportedly made a sensational last-minute bid to bring Thiago Alcantara back to the Camp Nou this summer, but the midfielder was already sold on moving to Liverpool from Bayern Munich.
The Reds snapped up Thiago for just £20m, with £5m in add-ons, which could prove to be the bargain of the transfer window given the quality of the Spain international.
It was a lengthy transfer saga over the summer as the Premier League champions came to an agreement with both the player and the German club for his services.
The Guardian reports that Barcelona tried to throw a spanner in the works of those negotiations by making a late move for their former player, but Thiago was not interested in returning to the Catalan giants.
The report states that Thiago had enjoyed a number of video calls with Reds manager Jurgen Klopp who successfully convinced him to move to Anfield.
In contrast, Barcelona’s attempts to bring him back to the Camp Nou were rushed and late in the day.
Thiago left Barcelona in 2013 for Bayern Munich after winning two La Liga titles and the Champions League with the Spanish side.
After moving to Germany he won seven Bundesliga titles and another Champions League before leaving Bavaria for Merseyside.
The Spain star explained why he chose Liverpool as his next step as he sees it as an ideal club to add yet more trophies to his collection.
‘I think it’s an amazing feeling,’ he said following confirmation of his signing. ‘I was waiting for this moment for a long time and I am very, very happy to be here.
‘When the years are passing, you are trying to win as much as you can – and when you win, you want to win more. I think this club describes what I am as well; I want to achieve all of the goals, win as many trophies as possible.
‘It also [has] this kind of family [feeling] that I need because we [like to] have a very close relationship with the club and I think I will feel this, I will have this feeling, with this club as well.’
