Mario Gotze has admitted that he turned down a reunion with Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool in favour of a second spell at Borussia Dortmund, while speaking to 11 Freunde.
The admiration between a World Cup winner and his one-time BVB boss is well documented.
Phrases like ‘world-class’ and ‘extraordinary’ have often been banded around whenever Gotze and Klopp are asked about each other.
But will they ever work together again, at club level?
There is still plenty of time on Gotze’s side at the age of 28, but erratic fitness and fleeting form has seen the one-time Dortmund talisman step away from the limelight, joining PSV Eindhoven on a free transfer last summer.
Barring a stunning resurgence in the Eredivisie, the Gotze to Liverpool ship appears to have sailed for good.
It is tempting to wonder, then, if the Germany international would make a different decision back in 2016, when he re-joined Dortmund from Bayern Munich in a £22 million deal.
“You have to imagine it like this: Where did I come from? From (Bayern) Munich, where I had reached the semi-finals in the Champions League three times with Bayern. I wanted to do that again!” Gotze said, reflecting on a time when Klopp’s side still glanced enviously at the likes of Chelsea and Arsenal.
“Liverpool finished eighth in the league (in 2015/16). In the situation at the time, the likelihood of winning the Champions League with Borussia seemed much greater.”
Gotze’s second spell in black-and-yellow hardly went to plan, of course. He made just five Bundesliga starts during his final season in Dortmund colours.
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