Liverpool should prioritize signing Khephren Thuram and Ryan Gravenberch

In the last year, Liverpool Football club have been linked with a plethora of midfielders from all over the world. Jude Bellingham, Nicola Barella, Khephren Thuram, Manu Kone, Gabri Veiga, Ryan Gravenberch and more recently Federico Valverde and Aurelien Tchouameni.

The club publicly backed out of the Bellingham sweepstakes as they felt it would be a better use of their resources if they spread out the money across multiple players. While I think it would have been amazing for him to take up the mantle as our “Next Gerrard”, I agree with the logic behind spreading the money out.

However, Liverpool’s midfield is in need of various types of players and as a result, we have not been able to hone in on a crucial few. The only occurrence thus far was the astute signing of Alexis Mac Allister from Brighton for 35 million GBP.

That business was swift and efficient, which is what the club needs right now. They identified the World Cup winner as a necessity, and made the requisite moves to get it over the line as soon as possible.

The reason I have singled out Thuram and Gravenberch as the priority targets is because I believe these can realistically get done sooner than later. Would I love to bring in a Barella, Tchouameni or Valverde? Of course, but those have summer-long saga’s written all over them with no guarantee of success.

I think for the benefit of the club and integration of new players, we need to bring in new faces as soon as possible and begin getting them engrained in the system.

For all his gifts, Mac Allister is only a piece of the puzzle. Liverpool have been linked with any midfielder that even hints at possibly wanting to exit their current club. Khephren Thuram, the Nice defensive midfielder, however, is the next closest link for the club.

At 6’4, the French international is a powerhouse in the midfield that has been missing from the Reds engine room for a few years. Across all competitions, including the Europa Conference League, he put up 2 goals and 8 assists.

But goals are not the focus of his game. He is a game wrecker and moves his side forward. His ability to transition from stopping an attack to launching the counter attack makes him a perfect cog in Jurgen Klopp’s system.

He will bring a more progressive mindset to the No. 6 role than our current holder of that spot, Fabinho. According to Football Reference, Thuram is in the 94th percentile of all midfielders for progressive carries and in the 91st percentile for successful take-ons.

At 22, his game still has so much room to develop and grow. He would be an ideal target for the club to get to Anfield as soon as they can.

Their other focus should be Ryan Gravenberch. A year spent milling on the Bayern Munich bench with sporadic starts has perhaps clouded people’s memories of the young Dutchman’s abilities and his potential ceiling.

Gravenberch made his name while at Ajax as he took over from future midfield maestro Frenkie De Jong.

The 21 year old brings versatility to the heart of the pitch as well. Like Thuram, he has box-to-box abilities on any given day. He can comfortably slot into the 6, 8 or even the 10 hole for a side. He reads the game incredibly well when on the ball and thinking of his football IQ and vision alongside Alexander-Arnold for example, should have the Reds attackers salivating.

He can get stuck into a tackle and he also brings good size so the physicality of the Premier League should not hinder his game. One pedestrian season in Munich stuck behind a loaded midfield does not wash away his ability. Form is temporary, but class is permanent.

I think Gravenberch oozes class and it could only be amplified upon his arrival to Merseyside.

If Liverpool go into next season having brought in Mac Allister, Thuram and Gravenberch as the next generation of their midfield, you would be hard pressed to argue against its validity.

All three bring the positional versatility that the system demands, are 24 or younger and bring varying levels of physicality and energy that has been sorely missing from the heart of this team.

They might not be the flashiest names on the rumor mill, but they make a whole lot of sense and could become stars under the best player developer of the last 5 years, Klopp.

Time will tell which direction Liverpool decide to go with their rebuild, but let’s hope the business gets done sooner than later.