Romelu Lukaku convinced Jeremy Doku to reject early Liverpool move

Anderlecht academy director, Jean Kindermans has revealed that Romelu Lukaku helped to persuade Jeremy Doku to reject a move to English Premier League giants Liverpool.

Liverpool wanted to sign the talented attacker two years ago, but Doku was convinced by Kindermans and the Inter Milan striker to stay in Belgium.

"It was a coincidence. Romelu, who comes by occasionally, was in my office at the time. We were talking about the difficulty of convincing young Anderlecht players to stay or sign young with us, like Jeremy," he revealed.

“He said, 'Boss if you want, I'll give him a call.' I picked up my phone, recorded his message, and then sent it to dad to give him advice from a guy who had gone through an early start. I think it may have played a small role."

Doku, born to Ghanian parents, stayed in Belgium and become a first-team regular at Anderlecht.

His consistency secured him a call-up to the Belgium national team this year before signing for Rennes in France.

Doku has made two appearances in the French top-flight this season.