'What the hell is this?' - Dominik Szoboszlai transfer claim made over talks before Liverpool move

Liverpool midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai could have ended up at AC Milan long before his move to Anfield

Dominik Szoboszlai has become a key part in the Liverpool midfield since arriving from RB Leipzig two years ago. But his career path could easily have been very different.

Szoboszlai has scored five goals and contributed seven assists in 34 Premier League games this season as the Reds have romped to their 20th championship.

The Hungary international's latest contribution was to set up a goal for Luis Diaz in the 2-2 draw against Arsenal that kept Arne Slot's side a whopping 15 points clear at the top of the table with just two games remaining.

Liverpool brought Szoboszlai to the club by triggering his £60million release clause at Leipzig in the summer of 2023 after the 24-year-old had earlier spent three years at Red Bull Salzburg.

And former AC Milan chief football officer Zvonimir Boban has detailed how he had identified Szoboszlai as a target for the Italian side while the player was still in Austria, only for the move to be among those vetoed by the Milan hierarchy before he was sacked for publicly criticising then chief executive Ivan Gazidis.

"Personally I went to close Dani Olmo," said Boban to Calciomercato. "They (the Milan board) didn't want to do it. It was January 2020. Everything was agreed, maybe something had to be raised, but it was a deal worth €18m plus €2m.

"We had also taken Szoboszlai, everything was agreed: €20m if the clause with Salzburg was met.

"Two operations that we would have concluded with the sales of Piatek and (former Liverpool player) Suso. There too they denied and I said to myself 'What the hell is this?'."

Szoboszlai scored for Liverpool in their 3-1 win at AC Milan in the Champions League group stage back in September.