As Liverpool FC’s season crawls to slow and dissatisfying close, transfer rumours are heating up.
First up, talkSPORT’s chief football correspondent, Alex Crook reports that Liverpool are weighing up an offer for Bournemouth’s Marcos Senesi.
This rumour has already been covered, but Tottenham Hotspur were believed to be the leading frontrunners for his services, with the caveat that they stay up. Still, it’s hard to imagine most players would choose Spurs over Liverpool unless guarantees of a starting spot or playing time are involved. Crook brings up Konaté‘s extension as possible factor, but from what Ibou said in the mixed zone a week or two ago, that seems done, with some final details to be sorted out so I’m not sure. Additionally, the Senesi rumours, along with that of Jan Paul van Hecke of Brighton from reporting out of the Netherlands over the weekend, seem to suggest LFC are taking a close hard look at centre-backs who are good on the ball and comfortable passing it out of the back. They’re so different from Konaté stylistically that I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s a separate move altogether. It does bring up the question of why Liverpool would seem to be loading up on so many centre-backs but that’s a topic for another day and I’ll let your imaginations run wild with the head coach/manager situation…
Moving on, Dominic King at the Telegraph highlighted five key areas in the squad for the Reds to invest in the next season: a number 6, right-wing, right-back, left-back, and attack.
At the number six spot, he mentions Wharton, but also brings up “Liverpool’s traditional close scrutiny of Ligue 1 means they will be aware of the well-regarded Mamadou Sangare”. I think Wharton will go a long way towards solving Liverpool’s problems with moving the ball out the back this season, but he should ideally be complemented by another midfielder who’s capable of raising the intensity of the unit to deal with the defensive transition problems we’ve seen all season. Sangaré, or Monaco’s Lamine Camara, would definitely fit the bill. Both can win plenty of duels, and while Camara seems to be the better passer out of the two, they’re both excellent technical players who’ll help move the ball up the pitch, and I wouldn’t be mad if Liverpool pursued either one.
For right-wing, it’s Yan Diomande again. King mentions the possibility of Liverpool using Leipzig’s long-standing interest in Harvey Elliott to help drive down the price.
At right-back, Denzel Dumfries is again mentioned. The Dutch right wing-back was previously mooted as a possible target in the January window, but nothing materialised. He has a release clause, and perhaps will be brought in as a veteran option that will hopefully see less of midfielders being played at right-back.
At left-back, the return of Kosta Tsimikas from loan to be the backup to Milos Kerkez is possible, but he’s also 30 and will have a year left on his deal, so looking into an alternative who can better compete with Kerkez is being looked at. RB Leipzig captain David Raum was linked recently, and will have one year remaining on his deal in the summer.
Finally in attack, King mentions that Liverpool will not be looking for a replacement to Hugo Ekitike as he reocvers from his long-term injury. Cody Gakpo is unlikely to be moved due to his versatility, while Federico Chiesa is expected to move on. Bradley Barcola is brought up, and King specfically mentions the interested in him after Luis Diaz’s departure, which they eventually distanced themselves, citing Rio Ngumoha’s development pathway.
Fabrizo Romano is reporting that Curtis Jones is keen on joining Inter Milan, who may follow up on their interest in the player from January. Of course, this wouldn’t be the first time a player that’s soon out of contract will have used interest from another club to secure a new deal, so let’s see how it plays out.
Lastly, Mark Douglas of the iPaper mentions Liverpool as a possible suitor for Bournemouth’s Eli Junior Kroupi. I… highly doubt Liverpool are going to be able to justify spending another £100m on the striker position after last summer’s Isak/Ekitike outlay. The attacking priorities will probably be the wingers, with a versatile player who could probably fill those central position minutes while Ekitike’s covering.
