Liverpool's transfer saga involving Nabil Fekir in the summer of 2018 took a puzzling turn as the player himself admitted he was bewildered by the failed move.
Hyped to be Philippe Coutinho's successor, the French international's £58.5 million switch from Olympique Lyon seemed all but done before it famously unravelled.
Seen as a lock to bolster Jurgen Klopp's midfield, Fekir had personal terms agreed and an apparent successful medical, only for the deal to bring him to Anfield be scuppered amidst talks of knee concerns.
The attacking midfielder had a tough time with knee injuries, including an ACL rupture while playing for France, which led many to speculate that these were behind Liverpool's decision to pull the plug on the transfer.
Despite staying one more season at Lyon, Fekir's exit eventually arrived in a subdued fashion as he joined Real Betis for a mere £18M the following year.
In a candid interview with L'Équipe in 2019, Fekir cleared the air, tackling the rumor mill head-on and debunking any notion that it was his past injuries that scuppered the Premier League dream.
Nabil Fekir playing for Real Betis
The former France international claimed his medical wasn't the issue for scuppering his move to Liverpool (Image: NurPhoto/PA Images)
"The truth, why the transfer to Liverpool did not work out, I don't even know it myself," he disclosed. "I passed my medical and after that, they decided not to sign me after all. What was said is not the truth," reports the Mirror.
"My knee is good - I had a quick medical check at Clairefontaine - my knee wasn't even mentioned. But the worst thing is the idea that people could suggest that it's because of my family that the transfer didn't happen.
"It's a lie. But you have to live with it. The attempt to spread this pseudo physical problem into the world of course had an influence on other clubs potentially interested as well."
Curtis Jones dribbles with the ball during Liverpool vs Real Betis.
Fekir faced Liverpool in a pre-season friendly last year (Image: Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images)
After the unsuccessful transfer, Fekir parted ways with his agent Jean-Pierre Bernes who had intimated that the player's knee troubles scuppered the deal.
Had the transfer gone through, Fekir would have joined forces with Alisson Becker, Fabinho, Naby Keita, and Xherdan Shaqiri at Liverpool, who went on to triumph in the Champions League during their maiden season at the club.
Currently, the English champions are honing in on securing the talents of Florian Wirtz. They have reportedly struck a £116m agreement, including add-ons, with Bayer Leverkusen for the German prodigy.