Liverpool legend John Aldridge believes goalkeeper Coamhin Kelleher may be tempted to leave Jurgen Klopp’s Premier League giants this summer with Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa among his reported admirers.
Speaking earlier in the year, the Republic of Ireland international appeared to be mulling over his options; the angel on his shoulder telling him to bide his time at Liverpool, and the devil sweet-talking him into a fresh start away from Anfield.
Caoimhin Kelleher will turn 25 in a few months. He’s played just five first-team games during the entire 2022/23 season.
And with the likes of Aston Villa and Spurs reportedly offering the former Cork City starlet the chance to play the kind of first-team football that looks beyond him as long as Alisson Becker stays put, Aldridge would not be surprised to see one of the Premier League’s best back-up shot-stoppers push for a summer exit.
Will Caoimhin Kelleher leave Liverpool?
“He is a class act and has proved himself on the biggest of stages,” Aldridge tells the Sunday World. “He was a key player in Liverpool’s League Cup and FA Cup wins last season. A top-class keeper, who should be playing every week.
“That’s where the problem lies for a keeper who is now 24 and needs to decide what comes next in his career.
“From a selfish point of view, I’d love him to stay at Liverpool for a few years and take over from Alisson Becker. But that could be a long way down the road.
“Kelleher might not be prepared to warm benches for the next five years in the hope that he will be Liverpool number one at some point. So you can see a scenario where he moves on this summer.”
At Tottenham, Kelleher could replace the now-36-year-old Hugo Lloris (Irish Independent). An unnamed Saudi Arabian club are reportedly willing to triple Lloris’ £100,000-a-week wages.
Aston Villa, meanwhile, could soon face a battle to hang onto Emiliano Martinez; a number of bonafide European giants in the market for an elite-level glovesman.
“We all know that (Kelleher) is too good to be watching football from the bench. He could get into most Premier League teams,” Aldridge adds.
“That’s why there has to be a chance he moves on this summer. And while I hope that doesn’t happen, you can see offers coming in for him. At Kelleher’s age, you could understand if he felt the time was right for a fresh challenge.”
The Daily Mail claim that Liverpool may accept £15 million for Kelleher. Klopp played down such suggestions, however, insisting last week that he would only let the 2020 Premier League winner leave for an ‘extraordinary’ offer.
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