On Saturday, the 25-year-old came on as a second-half substitute for Milan in a 2-2 draw with Empoli after missing the last few months through injury.

The Italian joined the Reds in the summer of 2014 for £16m but failed to impress and was sent back on a season-long loan to Milan.

"After a friendly against Milan I was asked the question and I felt Mario wasn’t someone who suited the profile of what we were after. But come the end of the summer when we were struggling to get in the type of player we wanted, the ownership thought this was perhaps a player I could develop.

"He’s a wonderful talent, there’s no doubt about that; you see him on the training ground every day – tall, strong, great touch. They were thinking this is a £50m player we could maybe get for £16m.

"When the owners are wanting you to go down that route and there’s no other option, you give it a go."