Liverpool’s new signing Szoboszlai reveals why he chose ‘special’ jersey number

Liverpool’s latest signing, Dominik Szoboszlai, has said he is excited to be given the No. 8 jersey because he is a fan of England legend Steven Gerrard, who donned the shirt for the Reds.

The Hungarian midfielder joined Liverpool from German Bundesliga side RB Leipzig in a €60 million deal on Sunday.

Shortly after arriving at Anfield, it was revealed that Szoboszlai would wear the No. 8 jersey.

He said it was a great number because it was his idol, Steven Gerrard’s number, at Liverpool.

“I will be number 8 as I have a tattoo of Steven Gerrard. That was the reason. He was one of the biggest when I was a child,” Szoboszlai said shortly after penning a five-year deal with Liverpool.

The Hungary captain also relished his move to the Premier League.

I’m joining a historical, top club. I’m very happy. The last three or four days went really long; it was not that easy!” he said.

“I’m here finally, and I really want to tell Liverpool fans that I can’t wait to see them at Anfield. I can’t wait to get started.”

Liverpool are very much interested in signing Real Madrid star Federico Valverde. The Reds are expected to bid again for the Uruguayan international.

As per a new report via MSN, Liverpool are prepared to pay a signing fee worth around €90M for the Madrid midfielder.

The Uruguayan international has now established himself as a starter and key player for Los Blancos. He has earned an irreplaceable place in Carlo Ancelotti’s plan and has been one of his most used pawns.

But in the recent past, he has lost the spark that he brought to the game and to the team. After World Cup, he has not served up to his standards.

Real Madrid President Florentino Perez, last season regarded him as ‘indispensable’ when Liverpool submitted a bid for him. But now circumstances have changed.

The Madrid side have just signed Jude Bellingham for €100M and are also looking forward to signing Kylian Mbappe. The club now is trying to make some money by selling a few players and Valverde might be one of them.

Real Madrid star Valverde to Liverpool: Possible?

The Uruguayan midfielder is a quality box-to-box midfielder who possesses world-class attributes. And Jurgen Klopp‘s guidance and coaching can help him improve even further.

The Merseysiders lost the race to sign English youngster Jude Bellingham this transfer window. However, the 24-year-old can be a worthy alternative to the English midfielder.

Reports have also confirmed that Chelsea are again scouting the market for new signings. Also, Manchester City are looking for a replacement for Ilkay Gundogan. Valverde is also under City’s radar.

The Reds are in some serious need of new signings as they work towards a midfield revamp. The club has already taken the first step and have successfully signed Alexis Mac Allister.

Now the Reds are also in close contact with French duo Khephren Thuram and Manu Kone. If they can pull off the Valverde deal then he can prove to be an instrumental signing for Liverpool.

Klopp no longer wants him, but he is unwilling to leave Anfield and upset fans

Jürgen Klopp looks to revamp squad ahead of transfer window

With the transfer window just days away, Liverpool is shaping up to be one of the most active teams in terms of signing new players. However, in order to allow new players to arrive, there must be others to leave the team, but apparently not all of them are willing to leave Anfield.

Jürgen Klopp and the Reds board moved quickly and got a “bargain” for their first reinforcement for next season, Alexis Mac Allister, who comes from winning the World Cup with Argentina in Qatar 2022 and everything seems to indicate that he will be just the first of several players to arrive at Anfield.

However, Liverpool also needs to sell players, especially those who do not fit in Klopp’s plans for next season, because they did not perform at the expected level. One of them is 27-year-old left-back Konstantinos Tsimikas, who played 20 Premier League games for the Reds

It seems that the Anfield board and the German manager’s coaching staff are considering selling him this summer and taking advantage of his value of 18 million euros in order to get other reinforcements that the club considers of greater importance. However, several media have assured that the Greek player is not willing to leave Liverpool and plans to fulfill his contract that binds him to the Reds until 2025.

Tsimikas’ numbers with Liverpool

Konstantinos Tsimikas arrived at Anfield in 2020, and in the three years he has played under Jürgen Klopp, he has made just 61 appearances. He has not scored a single goal and has dished out just 12 assists. Tsimikas was bought with the aim of creating competition for Andrew Robertson, something that clearly has not happened.