Jurgen Klopp has always wanted to coach in the Premier League, but the club he had always hoped to take over was not Liverpool but arch rivals Manchester United, according to the German's predecessor at Mainz and coaching mentor.

Eckhard Krautzun oversaw a young Klopp as he made the transition from player to coach, happily reminiscing about the times he sent the now-Reds boss on scouting trips to Africa and beyond.

But he also revealed in an interview with The Set Pieces that Klopp had eyes on Old Trafford rather than Anfield back when he was in Germany.

“It would be his dream to go to England one day and his favourite club would be [Manchester] United. That’s what he said,” said Krautzun, recalling a conversation he had once had with the Liverpool manager.

Jurgen Klopp's best quotes Show all 11 1 /11 Jurgen Klopp's best quotes Jurgen Klopp's best quotes <b>Signing Henrikh Mkhitaryan</b> "Mkhitaryan fits us like an arse on a bucket. What he offers is exactly what we need." Jurgen Klopp's best quotes <b>On his wife's books</b> "She wrote a book for children. It's like Harry Potter - but it about football. There's no Harry Potter flying on his f****** stick - just football." Jurgen Klopp's best quotes <b>His singing skills on the team bus</b> "I couldn't have been a rock star, although I do sing Country Road very loudly on the PlayStation karaoke game." Jurgen Klopp's best quotes <b>What he told his players after a poor first half</b> "I told my players during the break: Since we're here anyway, we might actually play a bit of football." Jurgen Klopp's best quotes <b>Are players banned from having sex before matches?</b> "My players sleep in double rooms the night before the match. I hope that nothing happens." Jurgen Klopp's best quotes <b>To a rival Schalke fan on the secret of winning the Bundesliga</b> "How do you explain to a blind person what colour is?" Jurgen Klopp's best quotes <b>Borussia Dortmund's rivalry with Bayern Munich</b> "We have a bow and arrow and if we aim well, we can hit the target. The problem is that Bayern has a bazooka. The probability that they will hit the target is clearly higher. But then Robin Hood was apparently quite successful." Jurgen Klopp's best quotes <b>On his playing career<b/> "I never succeeded in bringing to the field what was going on in my brain. I had the talent for the fifth division, and the mind for the Bundesliga. The result was a career in the second division." Jurgen Klopp's best quotes <b>On Bayern</b> "They are like the Chinese in the business world. They look at what others are doing and copy it, just with more money." Jurgen Klopp's best quotes <b>Losing the 2013 Champions League final</b> "The only thing I can say is that it was great. London is the town of the Olympic Games. The weather was good, everything is OK. Only the result is s***." Jurgen Klopp's best quotes <b>On having had a hair transplant</b> "Yes, it's true. I underwent a hair transplant. And I think the results are really cool, don't you?"

And Krautzun, who counts Sir Alex Ferguson among his most influential friends, ensured that the United boss knew of Klopp's ambitions.

“I said, ‘Jürgen Klopp, if he goes abroad, if he goes to England, his love would be Manchester United.’” Krautzun added, before revealing that Ferguson had been immensely impressed by Klopp after seeing his Dortmund side smash Bayern in the 2012 German Cup final.

"I think that’s where his love or respect for Jürgen Klopp grew tremendously."

Klopp has previously revealed that there were discussions with Ferguson about United's interest in hiring him but it came at the wrong time.

In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson Show all 27 1 /27 In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson 1.jpg 1986/87 Alex Ferguson was appointed Manchester United manager on 6 November 1986 and lost his first game in charge against underdogs Oxford United. United would only manage one away win in the whole season. Having been 21st and second from bottom when he took over, he guided them to an 11th place finish at the end of the campaign. GETTY IMAGES In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson 2.jpg 1987/88 He made several important signings including Steve Bruce (pictured), Viv Anderson, Brian McClair and Jim Leighton, who helped the team finish second in the league, nine points behind Liverpool. It was United's highest position since 1980. GETTY IMAGES In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson 3.jpg 1988/89 Mark Hughes (pictured) returned to the club from Barcelona but he couldn't help inspire them to improve on the previous season as they ended up finishing 11th for the second time in three seasons. GETTY IMAGES In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson 4.jpg 1989/90 Despite paying large sums for Neil Webb, Paul Ince, Mike Phelan and Gary Pallister, United started the season terribly, losing 5-1 away to rivals Manchester City in September and going on a run of six defeats and two draws. This led to the call for Ferguson to be sacked by fans and journalists alike, with Ferguson later describing the time as "the darkest period [he had] ever suffered in the game". United drew Nottingham Forest away in the third round of the FA Cup and it is widely believed if United lost Ferguson would get the sack. They won the game 1-0 and ended up reaching the final, beating Crystal Palace in a replay 1-0 after a 3-3 draw in the first game to give Ferguson his first silverware at United. GETTY IMAGES In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson 5.jpg 1990/91 United finished the next year in sixth place in a season that saw a 6-2 thrashing of Arsenal at Highbury but also a 4-0 hammering to Liverpool at Anfield. They were runners-up in the League Cup losing the final 1-0 to Sheffield Wednesday however they became European Cup Winners' Cup champions by beating that season's Spanish champions Barcelona 2-1 in Rotterdam (pictured). GETTY IMAGES In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson 6.jpg 1991/92 The arrivals of Peter Schmeichel and Paul Parker as well as the breakthrough of Ryan Giggs saw United finish in second place behind rivals Leeds. They also beat Red Star Belgrade 1-0 to claim the European Super Cup and Nottingham Forest 1-0 to win the League Cup (pictured) as Ferguson added to his silverware. GETTY IMAGES In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson 7.jpg 1992/93 Ferguson's decision to sign Eric Cantona from rivals Leeds during the season proved to be an inspirational one as he went on to form a partnership with Mark Hughes and fire United to the top of the table and to their first league title for 26 years, finishing 10 points clear of runners-up Aston Villa. Ferguson was voted Manager of the Year by the League Manager's Association. GETTY IMAGES In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson 8.jpg 1993/94 The signing of Roy Keane from Nottingham Forest for a British record fee of £3,750,000 as a long term replacement for Bryan Robson only helped to add to United's success. United led the table virtually from start to finish to win back to back titles. They lost the League Cup final 3-1 to Aston Villa but beat Chelsea 4-0 in the FA Cup final to complete the Double, Ferguson's second after completing it with Aberdeen in 1984. Ferguson also won the first ever Premier League Manager of the Month award in August. GETTY IMAGES In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson 9.jpg 1994/95 The following season saw United's star player, Cantona, banned for eight months after assaulting a Crystal Palace supporter in a game at Selhurst Park. Ferguson had however signed Newcastle's Andy Cole for £7,000,000 with Keith Gillespie heading to St James' Park. United went on to narrowly miss out on another Double as they lost the title on the last day of the season to Blackburn after only drawing 1-1 with West Ham and then lost 1-0 to Everton in the FA Cup final. GETTY IMAGES In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson 10.jpg 1995/96 The new season saw the promotion of youngsters to the first team, such as Gary Neville, Phil Neville, David Beckham, Paul Scholes (second left) and Nicky Butt (right). After they lost their opening game 3-1 to Aston Villa, Ferguson's young squad was written off, with Alan Hansen proclaiming "you don't win anything with kids". However they managed to turn around Newcastle's 12 point lead and win the title on the last day of the season with a 3-0 win away to Middlesbrough. They then beat Liverpool 1-0 in the FA Cup final with a late Cantona goal to become the first team in English football to win the Double for the second time. GETTY IMAGES In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson 11.jpg 1996/97 Despite suffering three league defeats in a row and conceding 13 goals in the process, as well as losing their 40 year unbeaten home record in Europe, United still managed to win a fourth Premier League title in five seasons and reach the Champions League semi-final, where they lost to eventual winners Borussia Dortmund. Bargain signing Ole Gunnar Solskjaer finished as the club's top scorer. GETTY IMAGES In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson 12.jpg 1997/98 It was a disappointing season for Ferguson as United led the table for most of the season but still managed to throw their lead away to Arsenal and had to settle for second place. There was also a shock FA Cup fifth round exit at the hands of Barnsley who finished the season bottom of the Premier League. GETTY IMAGES In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson 13.jpg 1998/99 United put the previous season behind them and with the help of new signings Dwight Yorke and Jaap Stam they went on to create history by becoming the first ever English team to win the Treble. They beat Arsenal to the title on the last day of the season with a 2-1 victory over Tottenham, secured the FA Cup with a 2-0 victory over Newcastle and won a first European Cup since 1968 in the most dramatic fashion by beating Bayern Munich 2-1 with two last minute goals from substitutes Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. Ferguson soon received a knighthood in recognition of his services to football. GETTY IMAGES In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson 14.jpg 1999/2000 United stormed to the title this season having secured it by April and winning by 18 points with only three defeats. Their decision not to enter that year's FA Cup to instead play in the World Club Championship caused outrage. United failed to make it out of the group stage. GETTY IMAGES In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson 15.jpg 2000/01 Ferguson guided United to yet another title as they became only the fourth English side in history to win the title three years in succession as well as also matching Liverpool's record of ten successive top two finishes, set in 1991. However they failed to build on their 1999 Champions League victory after they fell at the quarter final stage for the second year running, to Bayern Munich. GETTY IMAGES In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson 16.jpg 2001/02 Despite a run of eight successive wins that saw United climb from ninth to top of the table they ended the season finishing third - their lowest placing since 1991. Worse for Ferguson was that Arsenal clinched the title in United's own back yard with a 1-0 win in the penultimate game of the season. Despite making it to the semi-finals of the Champions League - losing to Bayer Leverkusen - it was the first time since 1989 in which they were not either winners or runners up of a competition. Many believed the failures were down to Ferguson's decision to announce he was retiring at the end of the season, only to retract it at a later date. GETTY IMAGES In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson 17.jpg 2002/03 The British record signing of Rio Ferdinand for £30m and the addition of Carlos Queiroz as Ferguson's assistant helped United reclaim their eighth Premier League title. Ten victories and a draw in their last 11 games helped them overturn an eight point deficit to overtake Arsenal. Due to the nature of the comeback Ferguson referred to the title triumph as his most satisfying ever. GETTY IMAGES In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson 18.jpg 2003/04 New signings such as Kleberson and Eric Djemba-Djemba (right) were disappointing in a season that saw them finish third in the league and get knocked out of the Champions League by eventual champions Porto in the last 16 - their worst performance in the competition since 1995. It was not all doom and gloom as Ferguson guided them to their 11th FA Cup with a 3-0 victory against Millwall. GETTY IMAGES In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson 19.jpg 2004/05 Despite the signing of Wayne Rooney and the emergence of Cristiano Ronaldo, United finished another rare season trophy-less. They finished third in the league for the third time in four seasons, bowed out in the last 16 of the Champions League again this time to AC Milan, lost to eventual winners Chelsea in the League Cup semi-final and were unlucky to lose to Arsenal on penalties in the FA Cup final. GETTY IMAGES In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson 20.jpg 2005/06 While they did win some silverware with the League Cup thanks to a 4-0 win over Wigan in the final it proved to be a season of transition for Ferguson's side as Roy Keane left and the likes of Nemanja Vidic and Patrice Evra came in. United failed to qualify for the knockout stages of the Champions League for the first since 1995 and finished second in the league. GETTY IMAGES In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson 21.jpg 2006/07 United won their first four Premier League games for the first time ever and never relinquished the top spot from the tenth match of the season onwards to go onto winning their ninth title in a season that saw Ferguson celebrate his 20th anniversary. They were knocked out in the Champions League semi-finals by AC Milan to deny an all English final with Liverpool and lost 1-0 to Chelsea in the FA Cup final to prevent Ferguson from winning his fourth double. GETTY IMAGES In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson 22.jpg 2007/08 Ferguson brought in Owen Hargreaves, Nani, Anderson and Carlos Tevez as he looked to further bolster his squad, however they suffered their worst start to a season under the Scotsman drawing their first two games, before losing 1-0 to rivals Manchester City. However, the strongest squad he ever had (as he claimed), went on to recover and secure a tenth Premier League title on the last day of the season, defeating Wigan 2-0 and beating Chelsea to first place. Ferguson also claimed his second and United's third European cup by beating Chelsea in the Champions League final 6-5 on penalties, with Edwin van der Sar saving Nicolas Anelka's penalty. GETTY IMAGES In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson 23.jpg 2008/09 United claimed their third title in a row for the second time under Ferguson, making him the first manger in the history of English football to win the league in three successive years on two separate occasions. It was United's 18th title in their history and put them level with Liverpool for the record amount of titles in history. They also won the League Cup, beating Tottenham on penalties at Wembley. Ferguson did brilliantly to guide United to a second Champions League final in two years, however on this occasion they lost 2-0 to Barcelona and were unable to claim their third trophy of the season. GETTY IMAGES In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson 24.jpg 2009/10 Both Ronaldo and Tevez were allowed to leave during the summer yet despite this, United won the first trophy on offer with their second League Cup success in two years as they defeated Aston Villa 2-1 in the final at Wembley. They couldn't however get to a third Champions League final in three years as they crashed out to Bayern Munich in the quarter finals on away goals. They also lost out on a record fourth Premier League title in a row, and a record 19th title, as Chelsea beat them to first place on the last day of the season, despite United's best efforts of a 4-0 win over Stoke. GETTY IMAGES In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson 25.jpg 2010/11 Ferguson became United's longest serving manger in history in December as he overtook Sir Matt Busby's record of 24 years, 1 month and 13 days in charge. The season ended with Ferguson winning his 12th and United's record breaking 19th league title. He also guided United to their third Champions League final in four years where again they faced Barcelona and again they were on the losing end, this time going down 3-1. GETTY IMAGES In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson ferguson-2012.jpg 2011/12 When Manchester City, backed by the seemingly endless wealth of Sheikh Mansour, became champions of England last season for the first time in 44 years, it seemed the power balance in the city may have shifted indefinitely. City won the title on the last day of the season in dramatic fashion with Manchester United finding out that the title had gone to their rivals whilst still on the pitch after their win against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light. Getty Images In pictures: Sir Alex Ferguson ferguson-villa-getty.jpg 2012/13 Sir Alex reclaims Premier League title from Manchester City, winning it for 13th time, inspired by inspirational signing of Robin van Persie. He announces his retirement from Manchester United before he lifts his final trophy Getty Images

“We spoke,” the Liverpool manager said. “We spoke not a lot but, for me, it was a lot. It was a big honour, the whole talk, to be honest. There was a time [when United were interested] but I could not leave Dortmund. That is it. You are in April and you are in the middle of the planning for next season. You have this player and this player and this player who is coming in but then you are not there any more? That doesn’t work. Not in my life anyway.