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Ex- Manchester United star Rio Ferdinand has admitted that Thiago Alcantara ‘wanted’ to sign for the Red Devils before he sealed his 2020 move to Liverpool.

The Spanish midfielder became a Red shortly after Bayern Munich’s Champions League victory, the Merseyside outfit sealing his services for a bargain fee of £20m.

Despite a slow start to life at Anfield, the former Barcelona midfielder has established himself as a key player in Jurgen Klopp ’s system. He has made 31 appearances in all competitions for the Reds this term so far - more than he made the entirety of the previous campaign.

The 31-year-old has been a key driving force behind Liverpool ’s quadruple effort under the stewardship of Klopp. However, he could instead have been strutting his stuff at Old Trafford, with Ferdinand suggesting that Thiago had desires on a switch to Manchester United but that the Spaniard made the right decision personally.

Speaking on his Vibe With Five podcast, the former defender said: “Yeah I spoke to him. He spoke perfect English, great guy. He wanted to come to United. But you look at him now and he could not be happier.”

Whilst Liverpool sealed the signature of Thiago from Bayern Munich, Manchester United recruited their own midfielder in the form of Ajax’s Donny