Liverpool switch information skilled Neil Jones has had his say on the Romeo Lavia saga in the meanwhile, while additionally naming some doable options for the Reds in that space of the pitch.
Writing in his exclusive column for CaughtOffside, Jones mentioned Liverpool had been set to make an improved bid for Lavia of round £40million, and that it appears fairly clear now that the highly-rated younger Belgian midfielder is their precedence switch goal for that place.
Nonetheless, Jones himself admits he’s an enormous fan of Brighton star Moises Caicedo, saying that the Ecuador worldwide seems a barely extra confirmed and ready-to-go choice for that function, even when he can’t realistically see a deal taking place.
“The place else to begin this week’s column than with Romeo Lavia? That’s the player Liverpool want in midfield, that’s the participant they’ve made a bid for. They made their transfer over the weekend, with a £37m bid to Southampton. That’s been rejected, but it surely looks as if Lavia is the choice Liverpool have settled on,” Jones mentioned.
“Southampton clearly desire a larger value, round £50m, and it looks like Liverpool’s provide isn’t 1,000,000 miles away from that now, taking into consideration add-ons. It looks like there’s a superb probability a compromise could possibly be discovered, however we’ll need to see how a lot Liverpool are prepared to go up, and the way a lot Southampton is perhaps prepared to decrease their calls for. My present understanding is that Liverpool are possible to return in with an improved bid, price in extra of £40m together with add-ons.
“A couple of different names have been talked about as properly, even when the Lavia curiosity appears essentially the most concrete in the meanwhile, but it surely’s not shocking that the membership could have options in thoughts. Joao Palhinha and Cheick Doucoure have been linked, and of these two I believe the latter is way likelier. Doucoure is 4 of 5 years youthful, so given his age and the cash type of cash that might be required for these gamers, I believe he clearly seems a extra real looking goal. He’s had a good first season within the Premier League, however I nonetheless suspect his asking value quoted from Palace sources of £65-70m can be slightly excessive.
“However related cash for Palhinha from Fulham, who’s 28 years outdated, makes that one lots much less possible. And that’s earlier than taking into consideration that Palhinha additionally bought what regarded like fairly a nasty shoulder damage in a pleasant in opposition to Brentford over the weekend, so I believe we will most likely tick him off the record. Doucoure, although, could possibly be one to regulate, relying on what occurs with Lavia, in addition to with Fabinho and Jordan Henderson.
“My ideally suited goal, even when it’s not real looking, would most likely be Moises Caicedo. I like Lavia, and suppose he may develop into a top quality first-team participant, however Caicedo is a extra established participant and can be my dream signing in that place.
“For me, he simply ticks each field that you simply’d need from a Liverpool participant to alter this crew going ahead. He’s Premier League-proven, he’s energetic, he’s robust, he can move, he can run, he’s proven he can fill in at right-back which may work properly in a crew with a roaming right-back like Trent Alexander-Arnold. Sadly, it doesn’t really feel prefer it’s going to be doable this summer time.”
Lavia is an analogous type of participant and an enormous prospect, so most LFC followers will certainly be fairly pleased with him arriving, if a deal can ultimately be struck.
Nonetheless, there’s little doubt it’s additionally a little bit of a chance for Liverpool at a time after they’re dropping so many skilled gamers who gained a lot with the membership on the top of the Jurgen Klopp period.
