Private jets and good food! Klopp opens up on how Liverpool tried to sign Mbappe
By BBC, July 10, 2026Former Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has revealed how the Reds laid on a private jet and food for Kylian Mbappe and his family in an attempt to sign the France striker before he opted to join Paris Saint-Germain in 2017.
The German said it was the “most expensive non-transfer” the club had invested in, as they courted the then-Monaco forward, who was just 18 at the time.
Speaking before France beat Morocco to reach the World Cup semi-finals, Klopp, who is working for Magenta TV as a pundit at the tournament, said the Real Madrid man had been wanted by Liverpool.
He went on to explain how a flight was taken from Blackpool to Nice in France, where “the entire Mbappe family boarded a private jet with five rooms or something.”
Ate good food
Mbappe, now 27, is represented by his mother, who runs a consulting company for professional footballers.
“We really went all out. Then we flew around in a circle, talked with the family, and ate good food,” Klopp said at pitchside.
He said they had not wanted to be seen having talks, but the meeting proved fruitless.
Fruitless as Mbappe moved to PSG
Mbappe later joined PSG on loan in a deal with an option for the move to become permanent for Ksh25.65 billion. He went on to spend seven years in Paris, becoming the club’s record scorer before leaving for Real Madrid in 2024.
“We flew in a circle. It was fantastic. And then he went to Paris,” Klopp said.
Klopp, 59, spent nine years on Merseyside, delivering a Champions League and Premier League title before quitting in 2024.
He is widely expected to be named as the next head coach of the German national team.