A reported transfer target from Liverpool would match the hype over Gareth Bale and could prompt the Reds to break with convention.
Every transmission carries some risk. Take for example Liverpool’s $68m contract for Naby Keïta. Few of the Reds’ signings have come with higher expectations. Keïta is likely to dominate the Premier League midfield for years to come after becoming one of the best players in the Bundesliga.
Ultimately, however, a fairly notable injury streak would ruin the Guinean’s career at Anfield and he would retire as a free agent at the end of his initial five-year contract. He returned to Germany with Werder Bremen where injuries have already struck.
However, there aren’t many great offers from Jürgen Klopp that you can look at and call a truly meaningful bet.
Not everyone was convinced by Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah, as the former had been inconsistent at Southampton and the latter notoriously struggled at Chelsea. But Mane had already shown a ceiling of elite level that Klopp could always unlock, while Salah had restored his reputation with major campaigns in Fiorentina and Rome.
Georginio Wijnaldum technically came from relegated Newcastle United, but he proved in the Eredivisie with Feyenoord and PSV Eindhoven that he was more of a Champions League player than a league player. Andy Robertson also came from the second tier but came for a minimal transfer fee of US$10m (£8m/€9.4m).
Alisson, Virgil van Dijk and Dominik Szoboszlai are the most expensive goalkeepers, defenders and midfielders in Liverpool history, but the former two were among the best in their positions before they even moved, and the third is about to have a status of 22 .
Darwin Núñez is the Reds’ greatest attacking signing of all time. While it was a bold move to spend up to $110m (£85m/€99m) on a player who has enjoyed a truly productive season for a top European club, we expect that it is already in its second year. made in Portugal, justifying the investment after an uneven start.
Liverpool have sometimes signed players with poor injury records, but the risk of signing Thiago has been mitigated by the $32m (£25m/€29m) transfer fee and Arthur has effectively been considered the least worst option on the table.
Market.
Ultimately, then, the Reds\’ proposed deal for Roméo Lavia stands out. Liverpool could part with a fee in the region of $64m (£50m/€58m) — that\’s what Southampton is reportedly demanding, via The Athletic — for a player who\’s only featured in 29 Premier League matches. Indeed, the club\’s recruitment team have previously established 175 games as a suitable sample size to judge a player (via Neil Jones/The Anfield Wrap), but Lavia has played just 36 at the senior level.
And crucially, it look as if he\’ll be installed almost immediately as Liverpool\’s starting number six. The original plan may have been for Lavia to be a long-term successor, and short-term competitor, to Fabinho, but now there\’s a very real chance that a 19-year-old becomes the primary defensive midfielder for Liverpool after just one season at a relegated club. However, Klopp does not see it that way, instead focusing on the player’s obvious potential.
“I’ve spoken to a few Southampton fans and people at the club,” journalist Jacob Tanswell told The Redmen TV, “and they haven’t seen a player like him since Gareth Bale was at the club when he made it through.”
Liverpool believe that the investment, however substantial, will more than pay off as they have found a child prodigy destined to reach world-class heights. Otherwise, there would be no question of returning with a second improved offer for the young Belgian.
Indeed, after graduating from Southampton’s academy, Bale won two PFA Player of the Year awards with Spurs and five Champions Leagues with Real Madrid. Perhaps Liverpool will come somewhere close to ground level.
All of this gives funders a choice. They may be scared of the proposed transfer for the reasons outlined above, or happy that Liverpool are deviating from their rigid transfer policy. Finally, he has clearly found a player so special that he demands exceptional treatment.
