Manchester City are closing in on the signing of rising star Jeremy Doku, much to Liverpool's disappointment.

The Rennes winger is set for the treble winners, after they agreed a fee with the French club.

Doku could have been a Liverpool player five years ago, but was convinced by former Reds star Sadio Mane to snub the Anfield club.

“My 16th birthday was coming up, the age you can sign a pro contract. A lot of teams came to see me - Liverpool was the most concrete interest but there was also Arsenal and Chelsea," Doku later told Ouest-France.

“I went with my mum and dad, and we were given a tour of the stadium, the training ground, even the school I would go to. They gave me a signed Salah shirt, and I met the players.

"I was able to discuss with Jurgen, Gerrard too, we looked at some video moments, and he spoke about the development. We met players, (Simon) Mignolet because he was Belgian, Wijnaldum from Netherlands. I talked a lot with Mane but we didn't really talk about football. We talked about everything.

"He told me that I was young, that I still had time… he wasn't trying to convince me or to say to me 'come here, you will succeed'."