The 41-year-old is adamant the club did all it could to sign the Ukraine international and insists he will not focus on his inactivity in the January transfer window

Brendan Rodgers insists Liverpool were not to blame over the failure to sign Yevhen Konoplyanka.

The Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk winger looked set to be on his way to Anfield with Liverpool’s managing director Ian Ayre flying out to Ukraine in order to complete the deal.

But while the proposed move collapsed late on Friday evening, Rodgers, who also missed out on Mohamed Salah following the Egyptian’s switch to Chelsea, insists the club were thorough in their pursuit of the Ukraine international.

“The club did everything possible to get the player in,” said Rodgers.

“In every aspect – the finance, we had our chief scout and managing director and doctor out there to conclude the deal – and from our point categorically Ian Ayre did a brilliant job trying to negotiate.

“I’ve heard the problem mentioned was about the money, but that was not a problem. It just wasn’t to be.

“I feel really sorry for the player because he was obviously desperate to come but it’s gone now and we will review it in the summer.”

Despite enduring more frustration in the transfer market, the former Swansea City boss refused to lay the blame with the Merseyside club’s owners Fenway Sports Group.

When asked about Liverpool’s inactivity in the January transfer window, Rodgers said: “It’s of no consequence now.

“I don’t focus on that, I’m really only focused now on working with the players that I have. There’s no point in me looking back.

“We’ve some wonderful people at the club, we’re very much together here as a club and I’m very conscious that whatever frustrations I have, I would never let you guys (journalists) know, that’s one thing for sure.

“This is a football club that I want to stay together and keep together for the longer term. It will never be broken by stuff that might be written in the papers and announced.

“I’m the type of person that if I have an issue and a problem, I don’t need to ring up journalists and give them little snippets to put out there.

“It’s not my way of working and if I’ve got an issue I’ll speak with the owners, but I’ll be diplomatic about it in the way that I’d do it and it certainly wouldn’t be out in the public, that’s for sure.”