Southampton defender Duje Caleta-Car has spoken out about his failed move to Liverpool in January 2021.
The 26-year-old was reportedly ready with a standby plane on deadline day as Liverpool scrambled for centre-back cover. But as the Reds turned to Ozan Kabak instead, Caleta-Car’s move broke down.
Now, speaking to Hampshire Live ahead of Southampton travelling to Anfield tomorrow, the Croatian has opened up on the saga.
“It happened really fast. You know, they get a lot of injured players – central defenders – so my agent called me and said to me Liverpool is there. They are something different and I wanted to join them because Liverpool is one of the biggest clubs in the world,” Caleta-Car explained.
“But it didn’t happen. There was something between Marseille and Liverpool but I don’t want to go into what happened. But now I’m here [at Southampton] and really enjoying it here in England. We play against Liverpool now so it’ll be a good test.”
Caleta-Car looks back on sliding doors moment
What a time to be alive January deadline day of 2021 was. With all three of their senior centre-back options out injured, Liverpool turned to a number of viable options.
Caleta-Car was one of those who’s move was obviously a little further along than some of the others.
From his words it would appear that, barring an issue between Liverpool and Marseille, the deal might have been completed.
Instead, the defender stayed on an extra 18 months in France, before arriving in the Premier League for £8m this summer.
So far, Liverpool haven’t really been made to regret their decision to back out on Caleta-Car. He looks like a decent defender, but the Reds held out for Ibrahima Konate instead.
Having just been named in France’s World Cup squad despite playing just four times this season, Konate’s star is on the rise.
Caleta-Car meanwhile was left out of Croatia’s final group for Qatar. That will be a disappointment for him, having been selected for the tournament in 2018. Being beaten to the punch by veterans Domagoj Vida and Dejan Lovren will sting.
So, it’s fair to say that the Southampton man has been on a slightly downward trajectory since his Liverpool dream broke down. That’s a shame for Caleta-Car and he’ll no doubt be out to show the Reds what they missed at Anfield tomorrow.
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