Liverpool had a January offer for Bayern Munich striker Mario Gomez rejected, it has emerged.
BBC Sport reports that Chelsea also made a move for the German, but Bayern resisted the temptation to sell Gomez, with the Blues then switching their attention Fernando Torres.
Gomez, 25, moved to Munich from Stuttgart in 2009 for a Bundesliga record fee - reportedly in the region of €35 million - but struggled to make a significant impact during his first season at the Allianz Arena.
This led to speculation that he could leave Bavaria after just one year, and speculation was rife in the summer that Liverpool had tried to secure his services on a season-long loan deal.
Indeed, the player soon confirmed that Liverpool had made contact with Bayern over a proposed deal.
"I have said that if I leave Bayern I will go abroad,” he told German newspaper Bild.
"Then came this interesting offer from Liverpool. I took the loan offer seriously and discussed it with my family and girlfriend because I just want to play.
"But Bayern gave me the impression that they see a future for me. And therefore a change was not an issue anymore."
Bayern's faith in the Germany international soon paid dividends, as Gomez netted nine times in seven games by early November - a tally he has consistently added to in order to take him to the top of the Bundesliga scoring charts.
Despite a change in ownership from the previous summer, it appears Liverpool remained keen on Gomez and - after they realized they had no chance of keeping Torres at Anfield - they made a formal offer to Bayern.
However, after missing out on the muscular forward, Liverpool swooped for Newcastle's Andy Carroll; agreeing a club record fee of £35 million to secure his services.
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