Former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has criticised Manchester United’s past transfer decisions to bring back Cristiano Ronaldo and Paul Pogba, suggesting that such moves rarely succeed.
Speaking on a podcast, Klopp revealed that United once approached him about managing the club but said he disagreed with their recruitment strategy at the time.
“In the year when Sir Alex [Ferguson] retired, they [Man United] spoke to me, they were interested at one point,” Klopp said.
“I did not want to bring back [Paul] Pogba — he was a sensational player, but these things don’t work usually.
Or Cristiano — we all know he is the best player, together with Messi, in the world, but bringing back never helps.”
Manchester United re-signed Pogba from Juventus in 2016 for a then-world record fee and brought Ronaldo back from Juventus in 2021, but both spells ended without major success.
Klopp eventually joined Liverpool in 2016, where he transformed the club into a dominant force, winning the Premier League, Champions League, and FIFA Club World Cup.
“Then, a pure football project came up with Liverpool and a sensational talk with [Liverpool co-owner] Mike Gordon,” Klopp added.
