"?Former Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers has admitted that he tried to take Thiago Alcantara to Anfield during his time in charge, having spotted the classy midfielder on numerous trips to Barcelona.
Rodgers, who will guide Celtic through their encounter with the Catalans on Tuesday night, revealed ahead of the game at Camp Nou that he has been visiting the club for 10 years.
"I've been coming for a number of years. I've always been a great lover of Barcelona and the structure of the club," the 43-year-old told Sport.
Thiago began playing regular first team football for Barça in 2011 and was one of a handful of players Rodgers recalled seeing on his trips. He was even keen to sign the player for Liverpool after taking over in 2012, although the Spaniard later joined Bayern Munich instead.
"Nolito was playing in the youth team, [Jonathan] Soriano, the midfielder who signed for Bayern [Thiago Alcantara]," Rodgers commented.
"I had hoped to try and get him to sign for Liverpool. It's understandable he signed for Bayern.
"I've watched [Barça] over many years and I'm a lover of how the club operates and the values they have."
Thiago, who was also a target for David Moyes when he first took over at Manchester United, made the switch to Munich in 2013. However, his first season at Bayern was prematurely ended by a knee injury and he later played just 13 times in his second campaign after a long recovery.
Now 25 years of age, Thiago will be hoping to kick on at Bayern after re-establishing himself with 41 total appearances in all competitions in 2015/16.
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