Liverpool duo tried to persuade Bellingham to join before Real Madrid move

Former Liverpool defender Conor Coady has revealed what lengths Trent Alexander-Arnold and Jordan Henderson went to in an attempt to get Jude Bellingham to sign for the club.

Prior to joining Real Madrid last summer and then going on to have an outstanding first season in Spain - winning a LaLiga and Champions League double - the England international was one of the most sought-after players when it became clear he was to leave Borussia Dortmund.

The Reds were heavily linked with Bellingham but were ultimately powerless in the race with Los Blancos and the Merseyside outfit went on to bolster their midfield by bringing in Waturu Endo, Dominik Szoboszlai, Alexis Mac Allister and Ryan Gravenberch.

Although, things could have turned out a lot differently had Alexander-Arnold and Henderson been successful at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

All three players were named in Gareth Southgate's 26-man squad and as explained by Coady, the Liverpool duo saw it as an opportunity to not only lead the Three Lions to success but to convince Bellingham to make the move to Anfield the following summer.

Coady reveals Liverpool stars' efforts to sign Bellingham

"I think Hendo and Trent tried with Jude, at the World Cup yeah 100%," Coady said when speaking on BBC Radio 5’ Football Daily podcast. "They man marked the life out of him. I think them two tried it, and to be fair, you would, wouldn’t you?

“Let's be honest if you are at a club like that, of course you would!

“And you know he’s going to leave in the summer which was quite common knowledge and there was all these clubs in for him. So, 100% you would, without a shadow of a doubt.

"Oh it was! And they were either side of him and they’d all be talking about how good Liverpool is, Klopp is and all this sort of stuff."