What’s happened to Takumi Minamino since he left Liverpool, including an unlikely new role

In October 2019, Liverpool fans got their first taste of Takumi Minamino when his Red Bull Salzburg team traveled to Anfield for the Champions League group stage. Liverpool emerged victorious in a seven-goal thriller, but Minamino was outstanding, scoring one and setting up another.

His assist that night was for one Erling Haaland, and while the Norwegian waited until the end of the season to leave Austria, a January move beckoned for his team-mate. Liverpool have bid a number of clubs sign Minamino after activating his $9m (£7.3m/€8.5m) release clause.

The deal looked like a problem at that price, with Minamino becoming the first Japanese player to pull on the red shirt. However, as Liverpool continued their rise to the Premier League title, the new signing had to bide his time.

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He appeared to have been given an opportunity to establish himself, but Minamino once again had to settle for a reserve role the following campaign before joining Southampton on loan in January. He hit the ground running, scoring twice, but that was just as well and he returned to Anfield the following summer.

He played key roles in helping Liverpool reach the FA Cup and Carabao Cup finals in 2021/22, but was not involved at Wembley in either. It was no surprise then that he sought to move away, admitting to Sanspo: “A lot of the games I played were of no interest to anyone.

“I was trying to inspire myself to prove my worth. I was doing personal training other than team training. I was motivated by regret and anger every day.”

Minamino, now 29, joined Monaco that summer and after a mixed debut campaign has been excellent this term. He scored nine times in all competitions and was often deployed in an unusual right-back role.

This change in position was inspired by Monaco finishing second in Ligue 1. His team-mate Aleksandr Golovin even called Minamino “the new Cafu” after a win against Lens in February.

The former Liverpool man was on target against Clermont Foot last weekend and provided another assist as Monaco look to return to the Champions League. Despite his struggles with Liverpool, he looks back on his time at Anfield with great fondness.

“It was a great experience for me,” he told TNT Sports. “Anfield is one of the best stadiums in the world, that atmosphere and if you sign on as a Liverpool player it’s amazing. I’ll never forget that feeling.”

Minamino could yet return to Anfield in next season’s Champions League and will be sure to receive a great reception. Liverpool supporters will hope there is no repeat of his last visit as an opposition player.