Liverpool have never had much luck in their dealings with perhaps the biggest club on the planet, Real Madrid.
After winning a European Cup final against them in 1981, it has pretty much all been downhill from there for the Reds.
Los Blancos have beaten them in two further Champions League finals under Jurgen Klopp. They hold the distinction of having knocked Liverpool out of the competition in four of Klopp’s six seasons in it with the Reds and in each of the last three.
Off the pitch, they’ve also pipped Liverpool a few too many times in the transfer market. No one will need reminding of how last summer’s pursuit of Jude Bellingham went, or indeed how the previous year’s chase of Aurelien Tchouameni panned out.
Intent on being a thorn in Liverpool’s side, Madrid are also currently said to be keeping tabs on Trent Alexander-Arnold. Meanwhile, they also took Michael Owen and Steve McManaman for far below market value in the more distant past. So, when the Reds tried to take a ‘Galactico’ from the Bernabeu in 2005, it was never likely to end well.
Luis Figo opens up on Liverpool transfer
The football landscape was very different 19 years ago. Somehow, Liverpool had just managed to win a Champions League while finishing fifth in Rafa Benitez’s debut season at the helm.
Real meanwhile were three years out from their most recent victory in Europe’s premier competition, and would have to wait another nine to lift it again.
One of those who had been part of their triumph in 2002 was Luis Figo. Now 32 though, Figo’s contract at the Bernabeu was up and he was looking to try something new. And, speaking to GOAL, the former Portugal international has claimed that a move to Anfield was on the table.
“Yes, it was a possibility at that time,” admits the 51-year-old. “It was close, I was negotiating with Rafa, but in the end it didn’t happen for different reasons. Liverpool at the time were struggling and not making a decision on whether to sign me, so I decided not to go there.
“I don’t know [what they were waiting for], but every week they were like ‘We’re waiting to do this’ and then they sign one player, ‘We’re waiting’ and then they sign another. So I said ‘Come on, this cannot happen, I cannot wait too long.”
In the end, Figo chose to join Inter, and it’s clear that he holds no regrets over his near-miss with Liverpool. “I decided [to go with] what was more secure and sure in that moment, which was after I had a meeting with Massimo Moratti [then-Inter owner]. For me it was the best decision to play for Inter,” he said.
How would Luis Figo have got on at Liverpool
There’s little question that Figo would have been a superb addition for Liverpool in 2005. Although into his thirties, the Portuguese went on to show his quality with Inter in Italy.
He stayed a further four years at the Milan side, making 140 appearances and helping them to four Scudetto’s and a Coppa Italia.
There’s obviously no guarantee that Figo would have made a similar impact with the Reds, but he’d have certainly been useful. On a free transfer, you could see him adding value to a Benitez team that was starting to take shape.
In the end, Liverpool did sign one of Figo’s Madrid teammates from the 2002 Champions League win. Fernando Morientes could never quite get going with the Reds, though. Had his former Blancos teammate joined him, maybe things would have been different for the both of them. What a shame this never happened.