Liverpool have contacted the agent of a £52 million Naby Keita replacement, according to reports in Italy.
Naby Keita was signed to some fanfare and we all got that little tickle of excitement when the deal was confirmed, but Liverpool have never seen the best from the Guinea international.
He’s looked poor this season when handed the chances, especially towards the latter end of the campaign and the poor run of campaign we saw against West Ham, Watford and Atletico Madrid.
That meant Jurgen Klopp dropped the former RB Leipzig man and preferred Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain while Jordan Henderson was ruled out of the side because of injury. Could Keita’s time at Anfield be up?
Well that depends on how seriously we are to take the latest transfer rumour linking a potential replacement with a £52 million move to Liverpool.
The Daily Mail has reported that there’s been some contact between the player’s agent and the men leading Anfield transfer policy.
If Liverpool want to sign another midfielder, Jurgen Klopp will surely have to sell someone from the first team squad. Adam Lallana is leaving on a free transfer once his contract expires and that will create some room within the side – but that’s expected to be filled by Curtis Jones.
Thus, if the team are serious about Marcelo Brozovic then it looks likely that someone will have to leave. The most likely candidate would be Keita.
According to the report, there has been contact between Marcelo Brozovic and his agent as Klopp tries to add some fresh faces to the squad for next season.
Brozovic has been with Inter Milan since 2016 and has a £52 million release clause embedded within his deal – a similar fee to the one Liverpool paid for Keita two summers ago and it’s an amount they’d hope to recoup if they decided to sell the Guinea international.