Liverpool ‘on alert’ for $131m midfielder and ‘leading’ second transfer run as scheduled for summer

Media Digest: Liverpool remain wary of a star who seemed out of reach. Meanwhile, the club is leading the transfer hunt for another midfielder.

Liverpool will not regret selling Simon Mignolet. Not only has Alisson established himself as one of the best goalkeepers in the world, but his replacement, Caoimhin Kelleher, can claim to be one of the best backups around.

However, the $7m (£6m/€7m) fee is starting to feel cheap. Mignolet has impressed for Club Brugge since returning to his native Belgium, but hit new heights last year and is now crowned the national player of the year.

No goalkeeper has won the Golden Shoe since 1987, when Michel Preud’homme received the award. And he is one of those who call on Mignolet to win. Speaking to Het Nieuwsblad, he and Jean-Marie Pfaff, another former winner, both pleaded for the former Liverpool stopper, who was described as ‘head and shoulders above each other’ .

Mignolet led Club Brugge to the Champions League knockout stages for the first time, keeping five clean sheets, including two against Atlético Madrid. Last season (which is entitled to the prize, since it runs from January to January), he was the protagonist of a league-cup double.

The Golden Boot will be awarded today. He would add to Mignolet’s impressive list of accolades, which included a Champions League win with Liverpool, albeit as a substitute for Alisson.

Transfer shift Amrabat

All had gone smoothly on the Sofyan Amrabat front for Liverpool. At the latest update from Foot Mercato, the Moroccan would have preferred Atlético Madrid. However, the latest story claims that Liverpool are now leading the race for Amrabat. According to Calciomercato, Jürgen Klopp’s side are ‘first tier’ for the World Cup star.

But there is more. The report claims ‘very high demand’ from Fiorentina deterred all suitors in January, including Liverpool. A fee of $44m (£35m/€40m) was deemed excessive. As a result, it looks like Amrabat will stay in January. Whether Liverpool will regain their top-flight status this summer remains to be seen, when transfer calls will certainly have eased somewhat.

At first it looked like he was going to join Chelsea. When that decision fell apart and Benfica demanded the full $131m (£105m/€120m) release clause, it seemed clear that Fernández was well out of the way. Liverpool price range.

However, the latest report from Portugal’s Outlets Record suggests that Liverpool remain ‘on high alert’ for the Argentine, likely in case he finally stays this winter. Like Amrabat, the saga could end without a transfer deal, and that could bring Klopp back into the game in the summer.

There is still the possibility that Fernández could move, with Chelsea considering a different approach for him in the final week of the spell. But Benfica are very reluctant sellers and could put their foot down. This could eventually pave the way for Liverpool, who are planning a midfield rebuild at the end of the season.

Also…

Liverpool working on a ‘brilliant’ transfer  to replace injured Virgil van Dijk – Jurgen Klopp

Virgil van Dijk’s recent injury has exposed a weakness at Liverpool as a centre-back. The club should repeat Napoli’s recent transfer for an ideal player for Jürgen Klopp.

Liverpool may be well stocked with centre-backs at the moment, but as Virgil van Dijk’s injury recently made clear, the club could still have a problem when it comes to depth, as Jürgen Klopp naturally has plenty of right-wing centre-backs. full-backs, but naturally no one capable of playing on the left.

Ibrahima Konaté was recently brought into that role, but he has fallen short of expectations and looks much more comfortable on the right, meaning Klopp has moved Joe Gomez into the left side role for now until Van Dijk does not recover.
However, Liverpool cannot afford to find temporary long-term solutions. Van Dijk isn’t getting any younger and sooner or later Klopp will have to consider having at least a replacement option for the Dutchman and possibly a future heir as well.

Of course, this centre-back doesn’t need to be an expensive target, given FSG’s tight budget and Liverpool’s main focus on strengthening the midfield this summer, this should be a relatively cheap option. However, as Napoli showed last summer, cheap doesn’t necessarily mean low quality.
In the summer of 2022, Napoli signed Kim Min Jae from Fenerbahçe for $19.5m (£16m/€18m), a move that has since proven ingenious. Kim Min Jae, who replaces Kalidou Koulibaly, has integrated very well into the club and is already establishing himself as one of the best promising defenders in the game. According to Corriere dello Sport, he is even on the radar of clubs like Manchester United and Liverpool for a suggested sum of between $53m (£45m/€50m) and $83m ( £70m/€80m). ). an exaggerated figure for Liverpool.

Instead of betting on Kim Min Jae, however, Liverpool should be smarter and instead turn to the club where Napoli picked up the South Korea international and go after their partner, who are still eyeing Fenerbahçe.

Back home, Attila Szalai was dubbed the ‘Hungarian Van Dijk’ not only for his superior physique, speed and interpretation of the game, but also for his skill with the ball. Szalai joined Fenerbahçe in 2021 and was a revelation for the club ever since. Over the past two years, he has made 98 appearances and scored an impressive nine goals during that time. Strong and commanding in the air, he resembles Kim Min Jae in many ways. In terms of physique and speed, he’s certainly a player fit for the Premier League, and he’s shown that on the international stage for the Hungary national team, who have achieved impressive results against the likes of France, Germany and England in the past few years. years with Szalai at the center of the national team’s defence.