I still regret not bringing Kaoru Mitoma to Liverpool – I should have insisted

Liverpool’s former director of research, Dr. Ian Graham, has revealed that a number of Brighton players were previously on the Reds’ transfer radar

Kaoru Mitoma of Brighton & Hove Albionduring the Carabao Cup Fourth Round match between Brighton & Hove Albion and Liverpool at

Alexis Mac Allister was afforded a warm reception when he returned to former club Brighton & Hove Albion on Wednesday night. The Argentina international was introduced as a 64th minute substitute in Liverpool’s 3-2 League Cup win at the Amex Stadium.

The midweek match marked the World Cup winner’s third meeting with the Seagulls since leaving the club to join the Reds in a £35m deal in the summer of

While at fault for Brighton’s opening goal in a 2-2 draw on the South Coast last October, Mac Allister later set up the winning goal for Mohamed Salah when Liverpool won 2-1 at Anfield the following March.

He won’t have to wait long to lock horns with his former club once more, with the Reds welcoming Brighton to Anfield when they return to Premier League action on Saturday. And the 25-year-old is expected to be recalled to

But while Mac Allister is the only former Seagull in Liverpool’s ranks, things could have been very different with a number of his former team-mates previously emerging on the Reds’ transfer radar.

Liverpool infamously missed out on signing Moises Caicedo last summer despite agreeing an £111m deal with Brighton, as the Ecuador international instead dug his heels in in order to force through a move to Chelsea instead.

But the Reds’ former director of research, Dr. Ian Graham, has shared his admiration for a number of Brighton’s transfers in recent years, with a number also finding themselves monitored by Liverpool prior to their switches to the South Coast.

“At Liverpool we admired both Brentford and Brighton’s signings, though we never told them that,” he wrote in his book, ‘How to Win the Premier League: The Inside Story of Football’s Data Revolution.’

“Me and my colleague Daf Steele used to keep lists of players who looked outstanding in their domestic leagues but were either not quite good enough for Liverpool or played in a style that didn’t fit ours…

“Brighton also signed players on our radar. Pascal Gross performed at an above-average Premier League level while playing in the second division of the Bundesliga, and has played at that level for years for Brighton. Enock Mwepu was the best young midfielder in Austria…

“Marc Cucurella was easily a Premier League level player while playing in Spain, and when Chelsea paid a barely credible £62 million to sign him, Brighton immediately replaced him with the only young full-back in Spain who rated at a similar level, Pervis Estupinan.”

However, there is one Brighton player that Graham still regrets not insisting upon as a potential Liverpool transfer target – Kaoru Mitoma.

“Kaoru Mitoma was the best player in Japan, rating above the Premier League average,” he wrote. “It was very rare for us to rate a player in Japan anywhere near Premier League level.

“It’s still a source of regret to me that I didn’t insist that Mitoma be more seriously considered as a potential Liverpool signing.”

Mitoma joined Brighton from Japanese side Kawasaki Frontale in August 2021 before spending that campaign on loan at Belgian side Union SG.

Returning to the Amex Stadium the following summer, he has since returned 14 goals and 15 assists from 77 appearances for the club. Such a total includes scoring a last-minute winner against Liverpool in the FA Cup back in January 2023.

With Wednesday’s League Cup loss his only defeat from five meetings with the Reds, he has often proven himself to be a threat against Liverpool.

However, while Graham might regret not attempting to bring the Japan international to Anfield, it is worth noting that the Reds perhaps won’t fully share the same sentiments as they already boast a plethora of options on the left-wing.

When Mitoma was first signed by Brighton in August 2021, Liverpool still had Sadio Mane as their first-choice forward on the left flank. Meanwhile, Diogo Jota, Takumu Minamino and Divock Origi were alternatives on the wing, with the Reds then landing Luis Diaz from FC Porto in a £49m move the following January, with the Colombian already proven at a higher level and in the Champions League.

While the former trio might have all departed Anfield by the time Mitoma returned to Brighton following his prolific year out on loan in Belgium, Liverpool then signed Darwin Nunez in a deal worth up to a club-record £75m from Benfica to bolster their attacking ranks.

Cody Gakpo would then join the club from PSV Eindhoven the following January in a deal worth up to £45m, by which point the Japanese was flourishing in a breakthrough first campaign in England.

The Reds have since also brought in Federico Chiesa from Juventus for an initial £10m. And while the Italian’s Anfield career has been curtailed by injury to date, club bosses will still no doubt be more than satisfied with their own attacking options and transfer decisions despite Mitoma’s success in the Premier League with Brighton.