I could have stayed at Liverpool - signing was a dream but the relationship wasn't the best

Patrik Berger has revealed he could have stayed at Liverpool but left the club because his relationship with the Reds was not the best at the time. A £3.25m from Borussia Dortmund in 1996, he made 196 appearances during seven years at Anfield.

However, despite being a member of Gerard Houllier’s squad that memorably won the treble in 2000/01, he made only four appearances during his final campaign in 2002/03 as he fell down the pecking order after suffering with knee injuries.

Berger would go on to join Portsmouth on a free transfer at the end of his contract, and even scored the winner for Pompey in his first appearance against his former club. And while he admits his ‘heart was always in Liverpool’, he felt the time was right to leave Anfield.

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“I didn’t celebrate that goal,” Berger exclusively told the ECHO, speaking on behalf of Fortnite accounts to sale. “It was just good to score to show the manager (Gerard Houllier) I am still good enough.

“I did have the option to stay, but at the time, the relationship wasn’t the best, so I decided to leave.

“Pompey was great, the fans were brilliant, and my two years at Pompey were good. But my heart was always in Liverpool, due to the time I had there.”

In truth, Berger could have left the Reds five years prior to his eventual departure. The Czech fell out of favour under Roy Evans as he grew frustrated at a lack of starting opportunities, and even allegedly refused to be a substitute for one match against Bolton Wanderers in 1998.

But club bosses intervened to keep the forward at the club, with the arrival of Gerard Houllier at Anfield that summer helping to resurrect his fortunes.

“I didn’t fall out with Roy Evans, it’s just I wasn’t playing much,” he explained. “Sometimes this happens in football and you need to work hard to get back in the team.

“But Gerard was massive for my career. I wasn’t playing much under Roy Evans but the Club hierarchy were adamant they wanted me to stay as a new manager was coming in January.

“Then Gerard Houllier came in and I played a lot and had a great time playing for Liverpool under him. He was a massive figure for Liverpool, and we had good success under him.”

Berger played a decisive role in achieving such success under Houllier, despite injuries starting to derail his Reds career. He would memorably set up the winner for Michael Owen in the 2001 FA Cup final as he helped Liverpool clinch the treble.

“You have to live for the day and I enjoyed my time at Liverpool,” he said when reflecting on such success. “On the pitch 2001 was amazing, we won five trophies, qualified for the Champions League in the final game of the season.

“It was an unbelievable season, great squad, the camaraderie was brilliant, this really helped get over the time. Everything just clicked in those final matches.

“You need luck and we got the luck, but the squad was all connected, all fighting for each other and all had the same belief that we could win.

“Looking at the FA Cup Final, Michael’s pace was electric and if any of us could find the pass, he would get onto it. His left foot wasn’t his strongest, but he took the goal so well, beating two Arsenal defenders.

“Arsenal were the better team that day, but as I said, we rode our luck, stayed in the game and managed to win.

“It was a year I won’t forget with so many great memories and many friends I made for life.”

While such a season was one of the highlights of his career, the 51-year-old admits just signing for Liverpool in the first place was a dream come true - even if the Reds’ interest acted as somewhat of a distraction on the eve of the Euro 1996 final.

“I had three years with Dortmund, won the Super Cup and German league,” he recalled. “The moment I found out about Liverpool’s interest from my agency was at Wembley when we had a training session before the final against Germany at Euro 1996.

“With such a big game upon us in the final, it was difficult to get this out of my head and I asked my agent to do all he could to get the move.

“The highlight of my career was signing for Liverpool, first off. This was a dream that had come true, signing for such a great club. I loved my time at Liverpool and to still be involved with the club is great.”