Confident transfer move cements Liverpool progression to dominance
By David Gate
Liverpool have been growing into one of the most dominant teams in Europe under Jurgen Klopp and the transfer of Sepp van den Berg highlights the progress.
In years gone by the signing of Sepp van den Berg as the first transfer move of the summer would be greeted by a chorus of whining and hair-pulling from the Liverpool fan base. However this year it is being greeted as a sign of exceptional strength.
Jurgen Klopp does not need another center back. He has Virgil van Dijk as the cornerstone of a miserly defense with Joel Matip in the form of his life. He also has Joe Gomez who proved himself capable of being a top-class Premier League defender before Christmas last year and will be pushing hard to start over Matip this year.
More from Rush The Kop
- Set to return, Virgil Van Dijk facing heavy criticism back home
- Liverpool making late comebacks all the rage once again
- Wolves tilt gives Klopp opportunity to tinker with lineup following international duty
- Players to watch in the matchup with Wolves
- Predicting Liverpool’s Next Five Premier League Fixtures
The Reds’ fourth choice central defender is Dejan Lovren. While he has received plenty of criticism from the fans during his time at Anfield, he is a veteran of Champions League and World Cup finals. AC Milan want to pay £25 million for him. Not a bad option to have in an emergency.
Most Liverpool fans watched Matthijs de Ligt in Europe last season and dreamed about seeing him in Red. However the truth is he may only be a little better than Klopp’s non-van Dijk options.
Instead the club can pursue the next de Ligt at a fraction of the cost. Sepp van den Berg cost £2 million and Bayer Munich were raging they missed out on him.
Liverpool are now in an excellent position. They have four international class defenders with van den Berg and Ki-Jana Hoever waiting in the wings.
They can see in pre-season and the rest of 2019 just where the Dutch youngsters are in their development. If the management determine they are ready for first team action the club can cash in on Lovren and invest it in an area of need like left back.
Liverpool are winning on and off the pitch and it is a golden time to be a Red.