The Reds are surprisingly going to be active in the market and defensive backup is seeing as a priority in the summer for Jurgen Klopp.
Liverpool’s back end of the season’s dip in form has urged the club to think about their transfer strategy for the summer. Initially, they had no plans on doing any work at all. The coronavirus has left a grey area over this summer’s transfer window, making it hard for most to almost all clubs to do business.
The Reds’ boss has openly admitted on more than one occasion that the club is not financially stable after the pandemic and the fans must not expect any big-name signings coming in for the new season.
Liverpool has already pulled out of the race for two of Jurgen’s biggest targets for the summer. Timo Werner, who joined Chelsea a few weeks back and Kai Havertz, who looks poised to joining the Blues as well.
This has left little enthusiasm that the Premier League champions will make moves in the window but of recent that has all changed now. After the boss’ words on incomings, the BILD reported that Liverpool and Bayern Munich are working on a deal for Thiago Alcântara.
The German outlet believes the clubs are working on a fee with them a few millions apart on the midfielder’s valuation. The Anfield club wants to pay no more than €25 million, whereas the Germans want closer to €40 million.
Consequently, more news has come out of the German quarters of Europe. Liverpool is apparently now in for RB Leipzig’s young 22-year-old defender, Nordi Mukiele.
More from Liverpool FC
- “Dreadful” Liverpool defender was shunned for being “miles off” vs Wolves
- Liverpool: Jurgen Klopp’s agent FINALLY addresses rumours he’ll leave
- Liverpool will rival Manchester City for colossal Premier League defender
- Liverpool are advancing in talks to extend the contract of “top professional”
- Liverpool lose captain for a further game after ban extended for “abusive” language
"A new defender is likely to be on the club’s summer transfer agenda amid doubts over Dejan Lovren’s future while Neco Williams could be granted a loan move to continue his development.Mukiele, who has established himself as a regular feature in Leipzig’s youthful squad, is most at home at right-back but also has experience of covering in central defence.According to Le 10 Sport, Liverpool are hot on the 22-year-old’s trail and have made arrangements to hold direct talks with his camp.Klopp likes to probe his transfer targets in an effort to gauge their character before green lighting a move so a one-on-one chat is a crucial part of the process. (Via: express.co.uk)"
Liverpool in for defender reinforcements
The Merseyside champions are looking for players to add depth to the squad. Dejan Lovren is still being rumoured to be on his way out and Joel Matip stays injured or is too unreliable with injuries.
Joe Gomez improves with each season but has spells where he shows a dip in form. Virgil van Dijk just plays too much and we yet to see how well the Reds can cope if the Dutch powerhouse was to be sidelined for a large part of a campaign.
This does showcase the immediate need for more options at the back. Klopp’s champions are still the best defensive team in the league for the past two seasons but have dropped the ball far too often since the restart of the Premier League.
They’ve conceded eight goals since being back out on the pitch, including a 4-0 demolishing by the hands of their closest title rivals, Man City. Adding to the miserable ending to a fantastic season, they’ve lost their record of only losing one game for the entire run.
The Frenchman could be the perfect fit, short and long-term. Gomez is the same age as Mukiele. The two could grow old together for the Anfield club and form a formidable partnership.
Any player coming through the ranks and learning from van Dijk will be a hot prospect in their playing career and is expected to achieve greatness. The Reds face stiff competition from French champions, PSG, who have been heavily linked with the defender prior to the Liverpool links.