Liverpool news: We nearly signed Klopp, says Bayern president

What's the news?

Bayern Munich president, Uli Hoeness, reveals that they nearly appointed Jurgen Klopp as their manager before he joined Borussia Dortmund in 2008.

In case you didn't know...

Jurgen Klopp started his managerial career with Mainz 05 in 2001 and stayed in charge of the Nullfünfer's for seven years before moving to Borrusia Dortmund in 2008.

He established himself among the best managers in the world with the BVB and ended Bayern Munich's dominance in the Bundesliga. Klopp won two League titles during his time at the Signal Iduna Park and also guided his team to the finals of the Champions League during the 2012-13 season

Jurgen Klopp left Borussia Dortmund after the 2014-15 season and was signed by Liverpool a few months later. He completely transformed the Reds in little more than three years and they are now among the favourites to win the league title for the first time since 1990.

The German manager lost three finals with the Merseysiders thus far and will be hoping to finally end that drought this season.

The heart of the matter

The 67-year-old Bayern president reveals that they had an agreement with Jurgen Klopp to become their manager in 2008 but the Bavarians ended up signing Jurgen Klinsmann instead.

He said: "Personally, I have a high opinion of Jurgen Klopp,"

"Many years ago we agreed on a collaboration together, but we ended up signing Jurgen Klinsmann instead.

He further elaborated: "There I showed I respect him and his work a lot. It's going to be a tough task for both sides. I hope we'll come out on top."

What's next?

Liverpool will face Bayern Munich for the first leg of the Champions League Round-of-16 match on February 20.