When Liverpool hosted Red Bull Salzburg back in October 2019, one player famously left a lasting impression on Jurgen Klopp, his players and the watching Anfield crowd.
Takumi Minamino would register a goal and an assist for the unfancied Austrians as they fought back from 3-0 down, only to suffer a 4-3 loss against the reigning European champions in the Champions League group-stages.
Also lively in Liverpool’s 2-0 win in Austria, senior players were suitably impressed. Upon returning to Melwood, Minamino was the name on everybody’s lips as Klopp’s ranks begged him to sign the Japan international.
Little did they know, a deal was already in the works with the Reds signing the versatile forward the following January after activating a £7.25m release clause in his contract.
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But while Minamino won the Premier League, FA Cup, and League Cup during his two-and-a-half years at Anfield, in truth he rarely managed to replicate such electric form for Liverpool.
Sold to AS Monaco for £15.5m last summer, it has jovially been suggested more than once that the Reds should have perhaps taken notice of the big, blonde Norwegian lad upfront for Salzburg instead.
Erling Haaland was just as mesmeric for the Austrians against Liverpool. Even though injury would ensure he could only start on the bench at Anfield, he still came on in the second half to help, briefly, turn the tide and score Salzburg’s equaliser.
That strike was one of an incredible eight in the Champions League group-stages for the minnows, with the striker netting a whopping 28 goals from just 22 games during the first half of the season before being sold to Borussia Dortmund for €20m the same month as Minamino’s own Anfield switch.
He was on the move at the same time as the Japan international last summer, joining Man City for £51.2m after they activated his release clause. Now 12 months on, he is a treble winner and scored an astonishing 52 goals from 53 games in his first season in England.
“Even when he was very young, younger than now, you could see the potential was insane," Klopp said last October when recalling his side’s first meeting with Haaland. "I don't think he started against us at Anfield, I think he was injured and came on.
“But we were already pretty busy thinking about him, I remember that. How can you close him down, how can you shut him down. He scored anyway.”
Of course, it wouldn’t take a genius to see that Haaland was destined for the top. But Klopp would reveal that despite signing Minamino in January 2020, they had no chance of always bringing in the Norwegian for one often overlooked reason.
“Dortmund needed a striker," he said in February 2020. "Everybody blames Man United for not getting him, but we wouldn’t have got him. We couldn’t have got him. It’s as easy as that.
“He wanted a top team, as soon as possible, with an open space...Borussia Dortmund. That’s timing.
“I hope you know how much I love and respect the people at Dortmund, but it’s not that they made a perfect approach and did this and that, it was more they were there, had the space, number nine... ‘Here we go, you are 19 years old, want to play Champions League, top end of Bundesliga, so go for it’.
"Nobody else had a chance, I’m pretty sure, no matter what they say."
When you remember that Liverpool were on the way to winning the Premier League title that season, with Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino, and Sadio Mane providing an untouchable front three, all at the peak of their powers, then Klopp has a point. When it came for Haaland to move to City, his wage demands ensured the Reds were priced out.
Of course, a number of other players in the Salzburg side also caught the eye against Liverpool three-and-a-half years ago. A look at the squad list from the two games and you will see the names of Patson Daka, Enock Mwepu, Hwang Hee-Chan, Rasmus Kristensen, and Maximillian Wober who have all made moves to the Premier League in the years since, though none as successfully as Haaland.
Meanwhile, you’ll also spot another familiar name in the form of the Reds’ latest transfer target - Dominik Szoboszlai.
Aged only 18 when running at Anfield, the Hungarian started on the opposing flank to Minamino, on the left, for Liverpool’s 4-3 win. But unlike the Japan international and Haaland, he was unable to make a name in lights impression.
WhoScored's player rating of 6.1 was the lowest they dished out that night, as he fired one shot off target, completed 25 of his 37 passes (68% pass accuracy), completed none of his attempted dribbles, won none of his aerial duels, and was dispossessed five times - more than any other player on the pitch. It was perhaps little surprise when he was withdrawn in the 71st minute moments after Salah had restored Liverpool’s lead.
In Austria, his WhoScored rating would be even worse as he was awarded a 5.7, one of only two players to register less than six, as he was this time stationed on the left of a midfield diamond. While his passing would improve, completing 40 of his 46 attempted passes (87% accuracy), he played no key passes, attempted no dribbles, was dribbled past four times, won none of his tackles, and was dispossessed three times.
By then a 19-year-old, on that occasion he completed the full 90 minutes. In truth, it isn’t necessarily a shock that Szoboszlai struggled against the European champions, who added both world and English crowns to their name in the weeks and months that followed. He was just a boy, facing off against Jordan Henderson, Gini Wijnaldum, Fabinho, Naby Keita, and Trent Alexander-Arnold.
As a result, while Minamino and Haaland moved on in January 2020, Szoboszlai stayed on for a further 12 months and emerged as Salzburg's leading man in their absence.
Joining RB Leipzig in a €20m deal in January 2021, injury left him sidelined until the end of that season, ensuring he would miss out on featuring against Liverpool again in the Champions League round-of-16. But despite those initial struggles against the Reds, he has continued to be sporadically linked with a move to Anfield in recent years.
Now, with talks being held with his representatives, Liverpool are exploring the possibility of turning such speculation into a reality, even if it is conceded that a deal would be complicated to complete this summer. A release clause of around £60m is believed to be active at present, although the clock may be ticking on it.
It’s easy to see why Szoboszlai has emerged on the Reds’ radar. Now 22, he's returned 20 goals and 22 assists from RB Leipzig from 91 appearances over the past two seasons and boasts plenty of Champions League experience. Hungary captain, he has also shone on the international stage.
Standing at 6ft 2, he has a clear eye for both a goal and a pass, and is incredibly versatile, with experience of playing as a number eight, a number 10, a false nine, and on both flanks.
He might not have caught the eye when Minamino and Haaland did in 2019, aged 24 and 19 respectively. But sometimes it takes players a little longer to get to the top.
Liverpool have monitored the Hungarian since those early meetings, with him doing enough to impress sufficiently since they first crossed paths. With Newcastle United also reportedly tracking him, he could be on the verge of following in the footsteps of his former team-mates by moving to the Premier League.
Szoboszlai’s best years are still very much ahead of him. Whether he spends them at Anfield or elsewhere, we’ll find out in the weeks ahead.
