It remains one of the greatest "what ifs" in modern Anfield history, a sliding doors moment that could have completely altered the landscape of European football over the last decade.
Back in the summer of 2017, as the footballing world clamoured to sign a teenage sensation who was dismantling defences across the continent with Monaco, Liverpool were right in the thick of the race for Kylian Mbappé.
Fenway Sports Group pulled out all the stops to bring the French prodigy to Merseyside. They chartered a private jet, invited the youngster and his family on board, and literally flew in circles over France while former manager Jürgen Klopp laid out his vision for the club.
For a brief moment, the stars seemed to align. Mbappé’s mother and agent, Fayza Lamari, did not just like the pitch; she genuinely fell in love with everything Anfield represented.
Yet, despite his mother’s desperate pleas and his own deep respect for Klopp, Mbappé ultimate chose his hometown side, Paris Saint-Germain, before later securing his dream move to Real Madrid.
Reflecting on those talks, Mbappé recently opened up about how close he came to wearing the famous red shirt in an interview with The Athletic and why his mother was so adamant that his future lay on Merseyside.
“Yes, I was close to Liverpool,” Mbappé revealed. “My mum was a big fan of Jürgen Klopp and the favourite destination for my mum was Liverpool. She wanted me to go there.”
That endorsement was not just a passing thought. Lamari was actively driving the process behind the scenes, desperate to see her son step out under the lights on Anfield nights. She personally made the trip to England, took in the surroundings, and experienced the unique pull of the club first-hand.
“She went there [for] the first step of the negotiations,” Mbappé explained. “She went to the city, she went to the stadium, she met the people. She was like, ‘It’s a wonderful club, everybody’s so kind, it’s a family club, a big club.’ She went to Anfield and fell in love with it. She watched a few games alone, to feel the atmosphere, because she wanted to imagine me in this stadium.”
For any teenager, a mother’s advice carries immense weight, especially when that mother doubles as your agent. As the negotiations progressed, the pressure at home to pick Anfield only intensified.
“All the time we were talking. ‘What do you think, mum?’ She’d say, ‘For me, you have to go to Liverpool,’” Mbappé recalled. “I said, ‘OK, OK, OK!’ because Jürgen Klopp was an amazing manager. I met him and had a wonderful relationship with him. I had big respect for him. But yes, my mum was always saying ‘Liverpool – you’re going to be there, playing at Anfield, it’s going to be insane for you.’ I was like, ‘OK!’”
The charm offensive from Liverpool’s side was as grand as it was secret. Klopp, who previously described the saga as “the most expensive non-transfer” Liverpool ever made, spared no expense or effort.
The German manager boarded a private jet in Blackpool and flew to Nice to meet the Mbappé family. Once in the air, away from prying eyes and media cameras, the Reds delegation hosted a lavish five-room dining experience while circling high above the French Riviera.
Mbappé vividly remembers that surreal afternoon in the skies, where Klopp attempted to sell the Liverpool dream to an 18-year-old who already had the world at his feet.
“I remember we were on the plane and we were turning around and around in the air while he was explaining his project,” Mbappé said. “I said, ‘You don’t need to convince me. You’re Jürgen Klopp, it’s Liverpool, a great club, so of course if I’m here, I have some interest. But I have other things, other projects, that are also good.’ I said to him, ‘Whatever decision I take is going to be a good decision because we are talking about some of the biggest clubs in the world.’”
It was a remarkably mature response from a teenager, but it reflected the calculated confidence that would go on to define his career. Liverpool had pitched the perfect project, offered world-class management, and won over his family entirely. However, emotional ties to his roots proved far too strong for the Reds to overcome.
“I didn’t listen because I wanted to play in my city, Paris,” Mbappé admitted. “I didn’t want to leave my country before I was someone. It’s a funny story. But in the end I took the decision to go to PSG because for me, born and raised in Paris, there was no better feeling than to show I could be a star in my home town.”
Instead of heading to the Premier League, Mbappé sealed a mammoth move to PSG, initially on loan before completing a £166 million transfer. Meanwhile, Liverpool pivoted, refined their transfer strategy under Klopp, and built a side that would go on to win the Champions League and Premier League without him.
Looking back now, as a World Cup winner, the tournament's all-time leading goalscorer, and a Real Madrid superstar, Mbappé looks on those high-flying talks over France as a fond memory.
Liverpool fans can only wonder what might have been had Fayza Lamari gotten her way, but the story serves as a fascinating reminder of just how much respect the club commanded on the global stage—even when competing against the infinite riches of Europe's elite.
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