Leverkusen star says Liverpool move ‘felt wrong in my gut’

Julian Brandt has revealed why he turned down the opportunity to join Liverpool in favour of staying with Bayer Leverkusen.

The 21-year-old winger was a prime target for Jurgen Klopp, but the £25million-rated Brandt was not receptive to the interest and last month told Liverpool he had decided to stay in the Bundesliga.

That meant Klopp was forced to look elsewhere and last week the club completed a £35.9million move for Roma winger Mohamed Salah.

But what did Salah see that Germany international Brandt did not?

“My gut feeling and my head are telling me the time to move has not arrived yet. I have to straighten things out in Leverkusen,” Brandt told Kicker.

“Of course there are players who say a year without European football before the World Cup is good reason to move.

“But if you move to a bigger club a year before the World Cup, you risk taking time at first to settle which possibly means playing fewer games.”

Leverkusen had a disappointing season last term, finishing 12th and were nearer to the bottom than the top of the table.