Birminghammail - Rubin Kazan forward Sardar Azmoun has prompted speculation on social media by posting a picture of himself and Liverpool chief Jurgen Klopp on Instagram.
Azmoun has previously been branded the 'Iranian Messi' and was reportedly a target for Liverpool last year.
The 23-year-old forward claimed Liverpool were interested in him last January as the Reds weighed up their options with Sadio Mane at the Africa Cup of Nations, reports the Liverpool Echo.
“There were talks of Liverpool having expressed an interest in me during the past winter transfer window,” he said in March last year.
“However, I did not feel the time to move was right.
"I would have ended up playing a few games and then spent a great deal of time on the bench as Liverpool were only looking to fill a void for a particular part of their season."
However, despite claiming to have turned down the advances of Liverpool, it would appear Azmoun still harbours an admiration for Klopp after posting this picture on to his Instagram account on Friday evening.
Azmoun simply captioned the picture: "the best" but it is unclear how recent the meeting between the pair was.
There is no clear suggestion that the meet was part of any transfer-related activity for Liverpool, with Azmoun clearly kitted out in his Rubin Kazan tracksuit.
However, with Klopp pictured wearing Liverpool's 2017-18 Presentation Suit, the meeting is certainly more recent than when the Reds were initially linked with Azmoun 13 months ago.