Graeme Souness claims Sheikh Mansour tried to acquire Liverpool before he invested into Premier League champions Manchester City.
The Scotsman, who won five league titles and three European Cups whilst as a player at Anfield, made the extraordinary claim on Sky Sports yesterday.
"I went to Dubai 12, 13 years ago," the 68 year old recalled, as quoted by The Sun. "I walked round the hotel with my wife and my son and went to the Nobu restaurant which was empty just after lunch.
"On the way out someone came over and introduced themselves, then a lady came over and she introduced herself as Amanda. 'I'm a Liverpool supporter,' she said.
Advert
"During the conversation she said, 'I'm responsible for taking the Abu Dhabi family to Man City' and I said, 'but five minutes ago you said you were a Liverpool supporter - why did you not take them to Liverpool?'
"She said, 'I tried and I tried but Gillett and Hicks were so difficult to deal with, they just walked away in the end'."
The owners Amanda alludes to, Tom Hicks and George Gillett Jr, were in charge of proceedings at Anfield from February 2007 to October 2010. Their reign was extremely unpopular, with the pair failing to deliver on the promises of a new stadium and funds for manager Rafa Benítez.
Advert
Following a series of struggles in the boardroom and mass protests from fans, the duo sold the club to John W Henry and FSG, known then as New England Sports Ventures. Since the group's takeover, Liverpool have won a League Cup, a UEFA Super Cup, a Champions League and a long-awaited Premier League title in 2020.
That said, if Mansour had been able to acquire the club back then, The Reds might have enjoyed even more success.
Since purchasing Manchester City back in 2008, the club have won five Premier League titles, two FA Cups and an astonishing six League Cups.
Featured Image Credit:Topics: Manchester City, Liverpool, Sheikh Mansour, Graeme Souness