Players will always come and go at football clubs, and in the case of some of those who have left Liverpool, it hasn’t always gone to plan.
The Reds have almost always done transfer business on their own terms. In the case of players departing, the club tends to make sure they get a good deal if they are to sanction the exit of one of their own.
When this has happened, sometimes the player finds things to not be as good as they may have either envisioned it would be, or merely not what it was at Liverpool. And in some of these cases, the player may even have a small amount of regret in deciding to leave Anfield.
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Here, we take a look at some players who may hold some regret in leaving Liverpool when they did.
Sadio Mane
The latest example; Sadio Mane was, and is still, regarded as a club legend for what he did in a Liverpool shirt. He left Anfield for Bayern Munich earlier in the summer in a deal that could reach £35million.
Mane cited wanting a fresh challenge as his reasons for calling time on his six years at Anfield. However, things don’t seem to have gone fully to plan since his move to Germany.
In his 11 appearances in all competitions, Mane has scored five goals. He was also withdrawn in the Champions League group stage win over Barcelona, which prompted manager Julian Nagelsmann to admit the player still needs to “adapt” at Bayern.
"He put in so much for Liverpool," said Nagelsmann last week. "He's a new signing. He just needs to adapt. He was trying. I'm certain he will succeed for us."
Takumi Minamino
Another of Liverpool’s exits from the summer of 2022. Takumi Minamino left Anfield to sign for Monaco in a deal worth up to £15.5m, calling time on his two-and-a-half year stay on Merseyside.
During his time at Liverpool, Minamino was rarely used as a starter. This reality is arguably what prompted him to leave Anfield, with 14 goals in 55 appearances.
Since moving to France, though, it does not seem to have gone fully to plan for Minamino. His seven appearances so far have seen him score just one goal.
One French outlet believes the former Red Bull Salzburg star has been the biggest 'flop' so far this season. Explaining their reasoning behind this somewhat controversial claim, Quotidien Du Sport said before Minamino scored his first goal for Monaco at the weekend: "The Japanese had to speed up the Monegasque game and bring movement in attack. In nine games, he played six, and never stayed on the pitch for more than 67 minutes. Replaced or substitute, Minamino seems too frail physically and struggling in the intensity of the duels, we understand why he did not win in the Premier League."
Emre Can
The summer of 2018 was a big transition for Liverpool. The likes of Alisson Becker and Fabinho arrived, while Emre Can left on a free transfer.
Despite Liverpool and Klopp wanting to keep hold of Can, and offering him a new contract, Can instead chose to leave as a free agent. He would end up signing for Juventus, but it did not work out for the midfielder in Italy.
After just 18 months with Juve, he was sent out on loan to Borussia Dortmund in January 2020. The move was made permanent the following summer, and he still remains at the Bundesliga club.
Philippe Coutinho
The biggest transfer sale in Liverpool’s history took place in January 2018. The Reds banked £142m from Barcelona for the transfer of Philippe Coutinho.
He had expressed his desire to leave Anfield a few months earlier, but the club resisted and wanted to keep him. In the end, though, Liverpool agreed a deal that saw them recoup a £133.5m profit on a player they signed five years earlier.
Since then, Coutinho’s career has not gone as he would have planned. He made 106 appearances and scored 25 times, but was sent out on loan to Bayern Munich before being sold to Aston Villa in the summer following a loan stint.
In the time that Coutinho has left Anfield, Liverpool have reached three Champions League finals, winning one and also claiming a Premier League title triumph.
Xherdan Shaqiri
Liverpool had signed Xherdan Shaqiri from Stoke City for a relative bargain £13.5m in 2018. He was never a regular starter at Anfield, but his performance in the famous 4-0 win over Barcelona will etch him in the club’s folklore forever.
Since leaving Liverpool in 2021, though, things haven’t gone fully to plan. He would sign for Lyon that summer in a deal worth £9.5m, but just a few months later he would be joining another club.
February 2022 saw Shaqiri sign for Major League Soccer outfit Chicago Fire. He’s scored seven goals in 28 appearances in the United States, but there may be a part of him that regrets calling time on his career at Liverpool.
Divock Origi
If one player could be described as a ‘cult hero’ at Liverpool, it would be Divock Origi. After helping the club win the Champions League and Premier League, he left as a free agent earlier in the summer.
He would end up signing a long-term deal with AC Milan, who themselves had just won the Serie A title. However, it certainly hasn’t gone well since his exit.
Origi has played just four times this season, missing five matches either due to selection or injury problems. He is yet to score his first goal, and his performances have not gone down too well.
A report in the Daily Mail by Italian journalist Alvise Cagnazzo has labelled Origi as the ‘worst signing of the season” in Italy.
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