Liverpool are still on the mind of one Premier League player who forced a move through in the summer transfer window, despite the club expressing their desire to keep him.
Thiago Alcantara and Joel Matip both departed Liverpool after their contracts expired last summer, while Adrian, Fabio Carvalho and Sepp van den Berg were all moved on following the arrival of Arne Slot at Anfield.
That's even despite the club's wishes to hold onto one of the latter duo, who both eventually moved to Brentford, with the promise of regular first team football not necessarily forthcoming.
Liverpool wanted to keep hold of Sepp van den Berg, who is targeting Reds return
"I had a few conversations with Slot, but before pre-season started, I already indicated to the club that I wanted to leave and play minutes," Van den Berg told Dutch outlet Voetbal Primeur. "I would be lying if I said that I did not dream of returning to Liverpool one day. That is still on my mind.
"But for now, it was better for my career to take a different path and play a lot. That is what I am doing now and that allows me to develop as well as possible. After pre-season, Liverpool indicated that I had done so well that they wanted me to stay. But I did not really see that happening myself. It was all my choice, I am happy that I now play in the Premier League every week."
Van den Berg hasn't ruled out a return to Anfield at some point in his career, though. The 23-year-old has enjoyed an impressive season at Brentford, playing across the defence and starting in 20 of their Premier League games this term.
Injuries to Joe Gomez and Ibrahima Konate this term would have meant that Van den Berg would have been afforded more opportunities at centre-back for Liverpool if he had stuck around, but he's content in his decision to leave and gain more regular first team opportunities.
"I would be lying if I said that I didn't look at that myself," Van den Berg said. "That's football, you don't know. I did well in pre-season and I could really see myself playing for the club, but not with the credit that I now have at Brentford.
"I am now a starter who always plays as long as he is fit. At Liverpool I would have been more of a player who had to fill gaps. I would rather be that starter . And who knows, if I do well here for two or three years, I will return to Liverpool and be a starter there too."
Van den Berg is valued at �15m by Transfermarkt, with the Dutchman's contract at Brentford running until 2029.
In FourFourTwo's view, Van den Berg has the potential to develop into a starting centre-back for one of the Premier League's top teams, but he still has some way to go to be able to compete for a regular starting spot. Swapping Liverpool for Brentford in the summer certainly made sense for his career.
