Nuri Sahin admits Real Madrid teammate Xabi Alonso convinced him about a loan move to Liverpool.

The Merseysiders saw off competition from Arsenal for Sahin.

Asked whether he spoke with Alonso before making his mind up, he said on liverpoolfc.tv: "Yes, of course. A lot of times. Xabi is a person who really cares about football. He's in love with football. I'm the same, and that's why we had a lot of conversations.

"When I arrived at Real Madrid, we spoke about German football and Italian football. He likes football! When he heard Liverpool were interested in me, he started telling me about Liverpool.

"He is still in love with Liverpool Football Club, I think. It's crazy how he was telling me about Liverpool. He was saying, 'Go there - you will love it. The fans will take care of you and love you' and things like that.

"He said Anfield is the best stadium in the world. Xabi won a lot of trophies here, and hopefully we can do that too."