Leeds United stalwart lifts lid on left-field transfer after nearly joining Hull City
Liam Cooper was on the brink of a Hull City homecoming following the expiry of his Leeds United contract.
The 33-year-old was expected to seal a return to the MKM Stadium, having cut his teeth in the professional game with the Tigers.
However, after a decade of service to Leeds, Cooper sought pastures new in Bulgaria with CSKA Sofia.
It was a switch that surprised many but the Scotland-capped veteran has enjoyed regular football with the Reds - and wears the captain armband.
“My agent got in touch with me and it came out of the blue,” Cooper told Leeds Live. “I had a few phone calls and jumped on a Zoom call with the directors in Sofia.
“I think if you speak to any football player, I'm sure they'll agree that at one stage in their career they wanted to have tested themselves and played abroad and that was a big thing that sat on my shoulder.
“Obviously I'm 33 years old now and probably not got as long in the game as I'd like to have… I just wanted to experience that before my career was over.”
Prior to his overseas move, Cooper had never plied his trade outside of England. After finding first-team opportunities limited at Hull, and loan spells at Carlisle United, Huddersfield Town and Chesterfield, he joined the latter on a permanent deal.
It was his exploits with the Spireites that caught the attention of Leeds, who moved to secure his services in 2014.
He remained with the club through one of the most turbulent chapters in the history, eventually being rewarded with involvement in a glorious period under the tutelage of Marcelo Bielsa.
Cooper is still keeping tabs on the Whites, who are currently locked in a tense battle for promotion to the top flight.
He said: “Taking my Leeds hat off and being neutral, I think we have by far the best squad in the league. We've been the best team all season and hopefully that's enough to get us over the line.
“I've not really seen one team who's as good, so I'm sure Daniel [Farke] and the boys will get the job done and then everything will be okay come May.”