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Costa not the only Chelsea star to come close to Liverpool move

| 11.03.2015

Diego Costa will be expected to spearhead the Chelsea attack against Paris Saint-Germain at Stamford Bridge this Wednesday but this week the Blues striker was busy lifting the lid on the move that never was.

Speaking in an interview with The Mirror, the 26-year-old revealed he previously came close to signing for one of the Pensioners’ major Premier League rivals.

“I was close to leaving Atletico,” he said.

“Liverpool are a great team, but after fighting so hard and overcoming difficulties to get my place at Atletico, how could I leave?”

Costa eventually signed for Chelsea last summer and the rest, as they say, is history.

But with the Brazilian the subject of the latest Ladbrokes price boost, which sees him go from 4/1 to 5/1 to score first against PSG, we decided to showcase five other Blues stars who could have ended up at Anfield.

Loic Remy

A well-documented Merseyside nearly-man, Remy had looked all set to swap Loftus Road for Liverpool this summer in an £8 million deal.

But a heart defect, first diagnosed back in 2010, put the Reds off a move, with the Frenchman later labelling the club as “dishonest“. Chelsea snapped him up as back-up for Costa.

Kurt Zouma

A star in the making at St Etienne, Zouma had many suitors prior to signing for Chelsea and, at one point, had looked likely to complete a Merseyside move.

The Express claimed that the Reds were in pole position for the young defender, carrying quotes from his agent David Vanditelli that indicated a Liverpool would be “very interesting”.

Willian

The Brazilian attacker had looked all set to join the Brendan Rodgers revolution at Liverpool back in the summer of 2013 after Anzhi Makhachkala opted to transfer-list the 26-year-old.

But late interest from both Tottenham, and most tellingly Chelsea, saw the ex-Shakhtar Donetsk man opt for London with the Reds manager later questioning the winger’s motivations.

Gary Cahill

Back when Gary Cahill was impressing with Bolton Wanderers, Liverpool were among those keen to sign the then-Trotters stopper, who had shone since moving to the club from Aston Villa.

The Reds had looked on course to beat Chelsea to the punch too, with the Blues initially stalling on a deal for the England international. Alas, it was not meant to be.

Eden Hazard

Roy Hodgson may not have been the most popular of Liverpool managers during his time in the Anfield dugout but if the Reds had stuck with the England boss they may have signed Eden Hazard.

The Belgian is the source of much interest from Hodgson, according to The Mirror,  who had been tracking his progress at Lille with a view to a move prior to his dismissal.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.

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Author

Jack Beresford

Jack Beresford is a content writer with over five years of experience in writing about sport and betting, including a two-year spell with Axonn Media. Contributes articles to HereIsTheCity and Lad Bible, while previous credits include Bwin, FTB Pro, Bleacher Report and the QBE rugby. Avid follower of tennis, rugby union, motorsport and football, Jack also writes about poker for Cardspiel.com alongside Guardian journalist Dominic Wells.