Mario Gotze has once again gone on record to confess his regret over not taking up the opportunity to reunite with Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool.

Germany's 2014 World Cup hero had the chance to sign for the Reds in the summer of 2016, having failed to live up to expectations at Bayern Munich following his controversial £31million transfer three years prior. Briefly the most-expensive German footballer in history, Gotze - who recently signed for Eintracht Frankfurt - had made his name with rivals Borussia Dortmund as a teenage sensation and shone under Klopp, who handed him his debut aged 17 and soon made him a staple of his side.

As his career stalled in Bavaria and Bayern were looking to cash in, the newly-appointed Liverpool boss offered the 'German Messi' a route out of the Bundesliga and into his Anfield revolution. But Gotze - who scored the winning goal in the 2014 World Cup final against Argentina - opted to rejoin Dortmund, where Thomas Tuchel was bidding to emulate Klopp's success.

Liverpool had finished eighth in their first season with Jurgen and had not qualified for the Champions League," the 30-year-old told German outlet Bild. "Even in previous years, it wasn't the club that always played at the top. Dortmund had previously played a top season under Thomas Tuchel. BVB [Dortmund] was on the up. Jurgen was still building something. In retrospect, you have to say Liverpool would have been better."

Gotze first revealed the tale three months ago ahead of ex-club PSV Eindhoven's Europa League quarter-final clash with Leicester. "I wasn't in a state of mind where I could consider it, that's why it didn't happen," the 2011 Golden Boy winner admitted.

Do I regret it? It's always difficult to look back but if you ask me now, then yeah, I should have joined Liverpool for sure. I just made a wrong decision but it's not a regret."

Unfortunately for Gotze, his return to the Black and Yellows was another ill-fated move. Following a promising start to life back at the Signal Iduna Park, the midfielder began to suffer from myopathy - a metabolic disease which can cause fatigue and weight gain - forcing him to miss the final four months of the 2016-17 season and stunt his progress his mid-20s.

Now, though, Gotze is shining once more thanks to a resurgent spell with PSV. Thriving in a creative role under compatriot Roger Schmidt for the past two campaigns, the playmaker racked up 77 appearances and helped the Dutch giants beat Ajax to win the KNVB Cup last term.

Europa League winners Frankfurt came calling this summer by triggering his bargain £3.4m release clause and Gotze decided that the time was right to return to his homeland, despite interest from Portuguese giants Benfica and MLS side Inter Miami. "A lot of factors played a role in the transfer," he explained to the Bundesliga's official website after signing a three-year deal. "The club, the passionate fans, Deutsche Bank Park, the Bundesliga and the talks with the people in charge, Markus Kresche and [manager] Oliver Glasner.

"The development over the past few years says a lot about the top-class character of the club and the team. For me it's been impressive to see how Frankfurt have developed. And winning the Europa League was a great achievement, absolutely fantastic."