A new era awaits Liverpool this summer, with Jurgen Klopp’s iconic nine-year tenure coming to an end with or without the perfect farewell at the end of the season. And with that new era looks set to come several fresh faces.
Liverpool transfer news
Before any incomings, Liverpool’s first focus will be on completing the impossible task of replacing Klopp, which looks set to lead them to Ruben Amorim. The Sporting CP coach has risen to the top of Michael Edwards’ and Richard Hughes’ shortlist following the news that Xabi Alonso would be staying put at Bayer Leverkusen for at least another season.
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Despite the rumours, though, Amorim has remained coy on any rumours about his future, denying reports that he has reached an agreement with Liverpool in a recent press conference, saying via Fabrizio Romano:
That said, Liverpool’s current reported targets would certainly suit Amorim’s 3-4-3 system, with Jeremie Frimpong among those to be linked to the Reds recently. The Leverkusen wing-back has been one of the best in his position this season and has earned plenty of interest as a result. The same can be said for his defensive counterpart.
According to TEAMtalk, Liverpool have now joined the race to sign Alejandro Grimaldo alongside Arsenal and Bayern Munich ahead of the summer transfer window.
The left-back has enjoyed an excellent season, more than playing his part in Leverkusen’s unbeaten run, and could yet be part of a double Liverpool swoop in the coming months. The Reds may be missing out on Alonso, but they’d more than settle for Leverkusen’s wing-backs this summer.
“Incredible” Grimaldo would be perfect for Amorim
Given that Amorim operates with a back-three system with wing-backs, a player like Grimaldo would have no trouble when it comes to slotting straight in, having starred in a similar role under Alonso at Leverkusen. It remains to be seen just how much Leverkusen demand for their full-back, but a player of the Spaniard’s ability is never one clubs will want to miss out on, even if Liverpool already have Andy Robertson to call on.
League stats 23/24 (via FBref) | Alejandro Grimaldo | Andy Robertson |
|---|---|---|
Goals | 9 | 1 |
Assists | 11 | 2 |
Tackles won | 22 | 18 |
Ball recoveries | 152 | 72 |
Key passes | 72 | 40 |
Blowing Robertson out of the water this term, it’s no surprise that Leverkusen sporting director Simon Rolfes has been so full of praise for Grimaldo. Rolfes told Sky Sports that the left-back is a “simply incredible footballer, technically great and very intelligent,” before going on to say: “Part of the reason why we dominate games to the extent we do at the moment is to do with him reading situations very quickly and coming forward to create overloads.”
