Hello and welcome to my first column for CaughtOffside! I’ll be joining Fabrizio Romano, Ben Jacobs, Christian Falk and Jonathan Johnson on the Daily Briefing with a weekly report on the latest Liverpool transfer news. Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoy!
The latest on Liverpool’s midfield search
The signing of Alexis Mac Allister may be done and dusted, but midfield remains a priority for Liverpool in this summer’s transfer market. Mac Allister is a significant signing to strengthen Jurgen Klopp’s options, but it’s never been a secret that the club ideally wanted two or even three new signings in that position.
Naby Keita, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and James Milner have already left, and even when they were there they weren’t too well stocked in midfield, so I don’t think they’re anywhere near done with their business in that position. There hasn’t been much movement since the Mac Allister deal was confirmed, but I think Liverpool are manoeuvring behind the scenes to find the players they really want.
Obviously Khephren Thuram and Manu Kone have been mentioned. From my understanding, Thuram is the likeliest out of those – the profile of him, his physique, his age, and the club he’s playing at, the kind of money that would be involved – I think he perfectly fits the bill. It remains to be seen how willing Nice are to let him go, and I think the fact that there looks like a number of midfield players likely to move soon in this market means that Nice might just be waiting to see the how the dominos fall, and what kind of price they can get for him.
Still, I think Liverpool and Thuram, even if it hasn’t moved much in the last seven days and a fee hasn’t yet been agreed, he’s definitely been identified as someone Liverpool want.
We’ve also known for some time that the Liverpool coaching staff are huge admirers of Nicolo Barella. Pep Lijnders referenced the Inter Milan midfielder in his book, naming him as one of the best midfielders in Europe and someone they were keeping a close eye on when they came up against Inter in the Champions League.
The issue is how much he’d cost and how willing he is to come and play in the Premier League. There’s been some talk of Newcastle also being interested, but that was played down quite quickly and it seems he doesn’t fancy that move, so let’s see how open he is to playing in England. It would be a nice surprise, but at this stage I would be pretty surprised if Liverpool were to go on and sign Barella this summer.
Romeo Lavia’s also an interesting one, as he’s probably the sort of player Liverpool would’ve signed if things had gone a little more to plan in the last twelve months. He’s a young player and if Liverpool were in a better position and trying to make small improvements from a position of strength, then I could see Lavia being high up on their agenda, based on his age, his potential and his style of play. I just suspect now, with the way things have gone wrong for Liverpool in the last year or so, that they feel they need someone who’s a bit more of a guarantee, someone with a bit more of a proven record of what they can do at the top level. Lavia is a top talent but I get the impression he’d possibly be seen as too much of a gamble at the moment. He’s a player they admire and they’re by no means alone in that – Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester City, they’re all in there, but from a Liverpool perspective, whenever I’ve spoken to people around the club about Lavia, the impression I’m getting is that it’s maybe a bit too soon for Liverpool to put all their eggs in that basket.
Still, it looks like it could be a busy summer with midfielders, and we’re yet to see exactly what happens with Arsenal and Declan Rice, what Chelsea decide to do with someone like Moises Caicedo, and I’d be amazed if Manchester United weren’t interested at some point with what they need in midfield, so there’s a risk in leaving it too long and I wouldn’t be that surprised if, depending on how the cards fall, that this ends up being one Liverpool could circle back to. For now, though, I’d keep more of an eye on Thuram than Lavia. If you look at the history of Liverpool’s signings in recent years there’s definitely a pattern in terms of the age – somewhere between 23 and 25, and the price, so I think that’s where Lavia, who only turned 19 in January and who might cost upwards of £50m, doesn’t quite fit the profile.
It also takes a particular personality to thrive in this Jurgen Klopp side – they often tend to sign players who’ve overcome difficulties elsewhere and maybe have a point to prove, or worked their way up from a lower level. So many of them fit that bracket, like Darwin Nunez, Diogo Jota, Fabinho, whereas someone like Lavia would be a bit of a move away from that – it doesn’t mean it can’t happen but I’d be surprised.
Remember that Liverpool set aside a lot of money for Jude Bellingham, and I think that’s the kind of budget they’ll now look to use on midfielders. Mac Allister came for £35m, and I don’t expect Liverpool to spend anything like £70-80m on anyone, probably closer to £40m.
Gabri Veiga interest makes sense – but he might not be the right tactical fit for Liverpool
I’m aware there’s been talk of Liverpool enquiring for Gabri Veiga, but my sources have been a bit cooler on those links. There’s no doubt about the quality of the player, but it’s more about the type of player he is – they’ve just brought in Mac Allister, who you would expect would play as an advanced number 8, though he can also operate deeper, so I’d say there’s a question-mark over whether another similar player like that fits into their midfield. Obviously we saw Klopp try something a bit different in midfield towards the end of last season with Trent Alexander-Arnold moving there and influencing things. Veiga, however, probably doesn’t fit the bill if Liverpool want a more physical player in there, as he’s more attack-minded and similar to the Mac Allister mould.
There may well be some interest in Veiga and things could change, but given that Klopp has brought in Mac Allister and also has players like Curtis Jones and Harvey Elliott, I’d expect Liverpool to look for someone more defensive and with more of a physical presence, which would explain the interest in Thuram and Kone. Veiga just seems like he might be a bit too attack-minded, but at the same time he has a €40m release clause and it does make a difference to your planning when you know exactly what you’re going to be paying for a player. It may be that they’ll focus on getting Thuram in first, and then look at Veiga with whatever money they have left.
Overall, I’m not too surprised Liverpool are among the clubs to at least take a look at Veiga. There’ll be plenty more links with big clubs until he does get his move, so it makes sense that, even if he’s not a top target, Liverpool are monitoring developments there.
What could Liverpool do in defence this summer?
There’s been some talk of Liverpool being potential suitors for Benjamin Pavard, but I would rule that out quite strongly. From what I know about how Liverpool do their business, the age and profile of the player just doesn’t fit Liverpool. I wouldn’t expect a move for Pavard, but it is true that the Reds are a little short at right-back, regardless of whether they persist with Trent Alexander-Arnold in his new hybrid midfield role. Even if Trent plays a full season at right-back, they’re a bit short of backup – Calvin Ramsay is leaving on loan after a difficult time with injuries, while Conor Bradley is returning from loan at Bolton and is probably not quite ready to play more first-team football at Anfield. It would be a big ask for the young lad to immediately step up and fill in in what has been such an important position for the club in the Klopp era.
Last season, the main backup right-back was James Milner, who’s now left for Brighton. They’ve also had Joe Gomez, but he’s had a bit of a tough time and has not really been on top form, while he’s also needed as an option at centre-back, so it’s clear Liverpool have a bit of a shortage there. Even if it’s just cover, I wouldn’t be at all surprised if they did try to make a signing in that position soon. If you look at what Manchester City have done really successfully in the last few seasons, they’ve been able to get players in who can play two positions in the back line, so Nathan Ake can fill in at centre-back or left-back, Manuel Akanji has played all across the back line, and I think Liverpool would love to get someone in who can do that.
Still, I don’t think it’ll be Pavard, primarily because of the age of the player. It has to be a younger player, and there’s also the left-hand side of central defence to think about as well because Virgil van Dijk is coming into his early 30s now and it might be more of a priority to find someone there as well. Jurrien Timber is someone who’s been linked recently, though it now looks like Arsenal are working on that deal, while there was also past interest from Manchester United. From the conversations I’ve had, I’ve not been given too much encouragement about him – if you look at the centre-backs Liverpool have had, Timber would represent a bit of a change; if you look at the likes of Van Dijk, Joel Matip and Ibrahima Konate, Liverpool like to have taller, more physical players, but with pace as well. They like to play a high line and so they need that recovery pace and aerial dominance, so I think recruiting someone like Timber would represent a bit of a change of tack.
Of course, Timber’s a fine player and at a good age now, with that blend of youth and experience, showing what he can do in European football and at international level. He’d also have a link with the other Dutch players at Liverpool, Van Dijk and Cody Gakpo, so I think the link ticks some boxes, but my understanding is that since the end of last season the interest has maybe cooled a little and it’s probably not going to be him they’re signing. There is a need to sign a defender, though, whether that’s a specialist right-back or someone who can play in two positions – Van Dijk, Matip and Konate don’t have flawless injury records, so it could be a gamble going into the new season without adding one more to that area of the squad.
There were also links with Kim Min-jae after his superb form at Napoli, but again it’s not quite the impression I was getting due to the age of the player. He’s obviously had this situation with the release clause in his contract, and that’s always going to attract attention, but it now looks like he’s going to Bayern Munich. I think Liverpool would still always prefer a young player, someone more in the Konate mould – someone who’s not necessarily reached their full potential yet, but who’s in their early 20s with their peak still to come, whereas Kim is 26, turning 27 next season.
Of course, Kim’s a top player, so fans might ask if it’s not worth making an exception from time to time, but Liverpool are quite strict on this, and the only time they’ve really done things differently was with Thiago Alcantara. They obviously saw an opportunity to sign him from Bayern and make a bit of a statement just after they won the league. But we definitely don’t see that too often.
A name to look out for could be Micky van de Ven at Wolfsburg. He’s 22 years old, tall, physically imposing, left-sided, and someone who looks like having a big future with the Dutch national team. I think he’s someone who’d make a lot more sense for Liverpool than a Kim Min-jae or another more proven name.
Liverpool missed Sadio Mane last season – and he may not be finished in the Premier League yet
It’s not been easy seeing Sadio Mane’s decline since moving to Bayern Munich last summer. It’s an interesting one again, though, because in recent years we’ve seen Liverpool let two players go in Mane and also Gini Wijnaldum, who a lot of fans would’ve ideally kept, but they’ve both gone on to have similar issues at their new clubs – they’ve not really settled, not got the love from their new fans, they’ve had a bit of bad luck with injury problems, so it feels like it might’ve been the right time to sell after all.
Wijnaldum’s career in particular hasn’t really recovered since leaving Liverpool. I do think that Mane, however, is more likely to still have something left in him and to rediscover his mojo. It was surreal seeing Bayern chasing the Bundesliga title on the final day but leaving Mane as an unused substitute – you’d have thought that was unthinkable after the standards he reached at Liverpool over the years, and it’s incredible that they didn’t want to turn to him in such a big game. It’s a reminder that sometimes what seem like obvious transfers don’t necessarily pay off.
I think there were a lot of times last season when I watched Liverpool and they missed Mane hugely, and I still think that. I’m sure they could’ve got more out of him being at the club than they did from the £30-35m they got from selling him to Bayern. I think he’s far from finished as a player and he could’ve continued to have a positive impact at Liverpool.
He won’t be coming back to Liverpool, I think we can safely rule that out, but his struggles at Bayern will make for an interesting situation this summer. I wouldn’t be at all surprised to see him back in the Premier League, with Newcastle recently linked with him, and of course the Saudi situation adds another layer of complexity to the market because it feels like they could target almost anyone, so maybe that’ll be an option for him, but from my point of view I’d still love to see Mane playing in the Champions League, playing at the top level, and reminding everyone of just how good he is, because the Bayern version of him isn’t the real him. I think Liverpool fans would all love to see him smiling again and showing just what a fantastic player he is.