Klopp's Fickle Eye: How Salah Slipped Through the Cracks (Almost)

Remember 2017? Liverpool were good, but not *this* good. They were building, sure, but the final piece of the puzzle hadn't quite clicked into place. And according to Gab Marcotti, that piece, Mohamed Salah, almost didn't happen. Jurgen Klopp, bless his heart, had his eyes on someone else. Julian Brandt, then at Bayer Leverkusen, was the gaffer's preferred target. Brandt was younger, German, and fit the system Klopp envisioned. But the recruitment team, led by Michael Edwards, pushed hard for Salah, fresh off a 19-goal season for Roma.

The Data Don't Lie (Unless You're Klopp)

Here's the thing: Brandt was a good player. He'd logged 27 appearances for Leverkusen in 2016-17, scoring three goals and adding eight assists. Respectable numbers for a 21-year-old in the Bundesliga. But Salah? He was a different animal entirely. In his two seasons at Roma, Salah had bagged 34 goals in 83 appearances across all competitions. That's a goal every 2.4 games, a far cry from Brandt's output. The analytics guys, the scouting department, they saw the raw production, the speed, the dribbling ability. They saw a player who could immediately impact Liverpool's attack, which had relied heavily on Sadio Mané and Roberto Firmino. Mané had hit 13 league goals in 2016-17, Firmino 11. They needed another consistent threat.

And it wasn't just the goals. Salah's underlying numbers were off the charts. His expected goals (xG) were consistently high, suggesting his output wasn't a fluke. He was getting into dangerous positions, taking quality shots. Brandt, while tidy, didn't possess that same cutting edge. He was more of a creator, a link-up man. Liverpool needed a finisher. They needed someone who could blow past defenders and stick the ball in the net, especially after Coutinho's eventual departure.

The Blind Spot and the Bargain

Klopp, to his credit, eventually relented. He trusted his team, and they delivered. Liverpool signed Salah for a reported £34 million. A steal, looking back, for a player who would go on to score 44 goals in his debut season, smashing Robbie Fowler's club record for goals in a single Premier League campaign. Imagine if they'd stuck with Brandt. He eventually moved to Borussia Dortmund in 2019, where he's been a solid performer, but never reached the stratospheric heights Salah did. No disrespect to Brandt, who's a fine player, but Salah is in a different league. He's a generational talent, a Golden Boot winner multiple times over, a Champions League and Premier League champion.

It's a stark reminder that even the best managers can have blind spots. Klopp's genius is undeniable, but his initial preference for Brandt over Salah just goes to show how fine the margins are at the top level. Sometimes, you need someone else to see what you're missing. And sometimes, that missing piece becomes the most important one.

My hot take? Without Salah, Liverpool's trophy cabinet from 2019-2022 would look a whole lot emptier. He wasn't just *a* signing; he was *the* signing. And if Klopp had gotten his way, history would be very different. I'm telling you, Liverpool would have won one, maybe two fewer major trophies if they'd signed Brandt instead of Salah.