'One of the best players' - Jurgen Klopp's verdict on Manchester United signing some consider a 'flop'
There aren't many Manchester United players that Jurgen Klopp would talk about passionately, but back in 2013, things were different.
Before the German manager started to annoy United fans by making Liverpool great again, he was doing amazing things in Germany with a thrilling Borussia Dortmund team that had knocked Bayern Munich off their perch. The key players in that team were their attacking stars like Robert Lewandowski, but perhaps the most important was the quiet playmaker behind him, Shinji Kagawa.
Kagawa, who was born in Kobe, Japan, started playing football when he was just five years old. He played for his local youth teams until he was spotted by Cerezo Osaka when he was 17. He spent four years at Cerezo and became famous in 2009 when he was the top-scorer in the J League 2, the second level of football in Japan.
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Dortmund noticed his talent and quickly paid a €350,000 release clause in his contract which allowed him to leave his club without any problems and try his luck in Europe.
Klopp, after leading Dortmund to fifth place in the Bundesliga and qualifying for the Europa League, used the funds to sign Kagawa and other players like Lewandowski from Lech Poznan and Lukasz Piszczek from Hertha Berlin. This was a perfect match for an exciting young manager and his squad as Dortmund quickly won the Bundesliga title, with Kagawa being named in the league's team of the season despite missing half the season due to injury.
The next season saw Kagawa return from injury rejuvenated, helping Dortmund win a second
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