Jurgen Klopp wanted another winger ahead of Mohamed Salah at Liverpool

The Egyptian found the back of the net 44 times in 52 appearances for the Reds in his debut season.

Jurgen Klopp originally wanted to sign Julian Brandt ahead of Mohamed Salah , it has been claimed.

Liverpool completed the signing of Salah last summer for around £36million from Serie A giants Roma.

In his debut term he went on to score 44 goals in 52 appearances – and won a Puskas Award for his splendid effort against Everton.

However, it has since been reported that Salah was not even Klopp’s preferred choice of target.

According to The Times , Klopp was very keen on Bayer Leverkusen youngster Brandt. The Germany star has impressed over the past couple of seasons and has attracted the attention of several top European clubs.

His form last season even earned him a spot ahead of Manchester City’s Leroy Sane in Germany’s World Cup squad.

The reason why Liverpool chose to go for Salah instead of Brandt was because of the club’s recruitment team, who were successful in turning Klopp’s head.

The Bayer Leverkusen star eventually revealed that he didn’t want to leave and risk not competing in Russia.

Julian Brandt Jurgen Klopp's preferred target

“My gut feeling and my head are telling me the time to move has not arrived yet. I have to straighten things out in Leverkusen,” Brandt told mynewscorner.

“Of course there are players who say a year without European football before the World Cup is good reason to move.

“But if you move to a bigger club a year before the World Cup, you risk taking time at first to settle which possibly means playing fewer games.”