‘We thought we had him’ – How Liverpool lost out to Arsenal in Alexis Sanchez transfer battle despite Gerrard’s approach

ALEXIS SANCHEZ was close to becoming a Liverpool player with Steven Gerrard personally approaching the player. The Reds were on the hunt for their next superstar after Luis Suarez left for Barcelona. And Barca wide man Sanchez was one of the ‘long-shot’ targets Liverpool tried to sign to replace Suarez. Liverpool boss at the time, […]

ALEXIS SANCHEZ was close to becoming a Liverpool player with Steven Gerrard personally approaching the player.

The Reds were on the hunt for their next superstar after Luis Suarez left for Barcelona.

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Steven Gerrard tried to personally convince Alexis Sanchez to join Liverpool[/caption]

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Arsenal were seen as a more attractive option on 2014[/caption]

And Barca wide man Sanchez was one of the ‘long-shot’ targets Liverpool tried to sign to replace Suarez.

Liverpool boss at the time, Brendan Rodgers, insisted at one point the club ‘thought’ they had him.

Rodgers said: “We felt we needed to get a world-class operator, to go like-for-like.

“It was always going to be very difficult to replace Luis. Alexis was that player. We thought we had him.”

Club legend and captain Gerrard was also a part of Liverpool’s transfer strategy, and he would personally contact targets.

Gerrard revealed in his 2016 biography: “The club would let me know which long-shot target they had in mind and then ask me to contact him.

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“They thought that a request to consider moving to Liverpool would have more impact coming from me.”

He continued: “I tried hard with Sanchez.

“I was hoping I could ride the wave of our fantastic 2013-14 season.

“He was great in the way he responded; his English was good and we had some detailed text exchanges.”

But Liverpool quickly learned how keen legendary Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger was on Sanchez.

The Frenchman had even ‘gone to Brazil to try and convince’ Sanchez to join Arsenal, and convince him he did.

Arsenal were seen as a more attractive option and after the 2014 World Cup, Sanchez signed for the north London club for a fee close to £32million.

And Sanchez later went on to prove that Liverpool really missed out on signing him.

The Chile icon won two FA Cups with the Gunners and was regarded as one of the Premier League’s best before leaving for Manchester United.

Sanchez’s star power left Gerrard wondering what trophies would have followed the winger to Anfield should he have joined Liverpool instead.

Gerrard said: “He would become one of the signings of the season.

“And, well over a year later, I still wondered how Liverpool’s 2014-15 campaign might have turned out had Sanchez chosen us.”

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