El Hadji Diouf proved to be a problematic signing for Liverpool – but the forward could have been Manchester United's marquee transfer instead in 2002.
After starring for Senegal at the World Cup, there was plenty of fanfare surrounding Diouf's move to England. His standout performance against France in the tournament's opening game caught the eye of Liverpool boss Gerard Houllier, who struck a £10million deal for Diouf – though they were not the only top Premier League club interested in the Lens attacker.
Diouf, who turns 44 today (January 15), was supposed to propel Liverpool from serial challengers to Premier League title winners, but he only mustered three goals in 55 league games and became one of football's most controversial figures. Looking back on his two-year spell at Anfield, Diouf admitted he should have joined United instead of their bitter rivals.
READ MORE: {{title}}
In a 2018 interview with RMC Sport, he was asked which club he most regretted playing for. "I would say Liverpool," Diouf replied. "Because if I had the chance again I would go to Manchester United or Barcelona. At the time they wanted me also."
Despite scoring twice on his Anfield debut, Diouf's goals soon dried up, failing to score again in the Premier League until March and incredibly drawing a blank the following season across all competitions, despite appearing 33 times. Diouf's poor scoring record was compounded by his disciplinary problems, which infamously came to the fore against Celtic in March 2003.
Diouf spat at a Celtic fan during their UEFA Cup quarter-final tie, leading to police involvement, a two-match suspension, and a fine of two weeks' wages. Houllier, who left Liverpool in 2004, later conceded that signing Diouf for £10m was a major mistake.
"The disappointment has been El-Hadji Diouf because he has great potential but has never shown consistency," Houllier told the BBC. "On occasions he has not given a good impression of the club, and that has no doubt in my mind affected people's views."
Meanwhile, United won the title in 2003 and were on the cusp of teaming Cristiano Ronaldo with Wayne Rooney by the time Diouf left Liverpool in 2004. While Ferguson was rebuilding his side at Old Trafford, Liverpool lamented their decision not to snap up former loanee Nicolas Anelka, who Diouf had replaced.
Most Read
Overall, the Senegalese star scored six goals in 80 Liverpool appearances before being loaned to Bolton Wanderers in 2004. Jamie Carragher later delivered a scathing assessment of Diouf's time at the club. "He has one of the worst strike rates of any forward in Liverpool history," Carragher said. "He's the only No.9 ever to go through a whole season without scoring, in fact he's probably the only No.9 of any club to do that. He was always the last one to get picked in training."
Diouf spent four years with Bolton and later rejoined manager Sam Allardyce at Blackburn Rovers. The forward had spells at Rangers, Doncaster Rovers, Leeds United and Malaysian club Sabah before hanging up his boots in 2015.