Mamadou Sakho chose Liverpool over European giants in 2013
According to Stadium Mag (h/t Daily Mail), Mamadou Sakho rejected interest from Bayern Munich, Arsenal, and Barcelona to make the switch to Liverpool in 2013.
He has described the Reds as the club of his dreams, which prompted him to make the switch worth £18m. He spent three seasons at Anfield before moving to Crystal Palace in 2016 (h/t Daily Mail).
“I had a number of offers from Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Arsenal and Liverpool. I choose Liverpool because they were one of the clubs of my dreams with a great history.”
Sakho has fond memories of playing alongside Luis Suarez and Steven Gerrard. In his very first season at the club, the Reds went on to almost clinch the Premier League title, falling short at the final stretch.
Sakho was a fan of the Anfield crowd and the opportunity to play in front of them was not something he wanted to pass on (h/t Daily Mail).
Sakho made a number of key performances for us over the years. He famously played a key role in bringing Liverpool back on level terms in the pulsating 4-3 comeback against Borussia Dortmund in 2016.
A dream gone sour!
He was later suspected of having violated an anti-doping rules. Sakho tested positive for a fat burner, which led to him receiving a 30-day ban from football. (h/t UEFA)
Even though the case was dismissed by UEFA, it ended up with him missing the Europa League final in 2016, a match we lost 3-1.
A slew of unprofessional behaviour saw him earn Jurgen Klopp’s wrath that summer. Klopp is a manager with a sense of humour but that never extended to unprofessional behaviour.
Not only was Sakho late for the team’s flight during pre-season that summer, but also for a medical treatment session and a team meal time. (h/t Guardian)
These antics saw him get demoted to the reserves. He eventually ended up moving to Crystal Palace on a loan on deadline in the January window.
He would never make another appearance for Liverpool and made his move to Selhurst Park permanent that summer. It was good business by Liverpool who made a profit by selling him for £26m. (h/t Sky Sports)
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Sakho made 80 appearances and scored three goals during his three years at Anfield. He also took part in the club’s community program by teaching French to schoolchildren (h/t BBC).
