Liverpool supporters must have woken up on Tuesday morning feeling like a kid at Christmas. Wow, a new PlayStation and a BMX?! Forget one or the other, have both. ‘Tis the season to be jolly, after all.
According to Argentine publication El Capital, the Premier League giants have already agreed a deal with Benfica star Enzo Fernandez. Portuguese source O Jogo, meanwhile, reports that Liverpool are ready to match any other offer put forward for a player who came within touching distance of joining Wolverhampton Wanderers over the summer.
Enzo, one of the breakout stars of the 2022 Qatar World Cup, has a £103 million release clause in his contract. Benfica have already warned any potential suitors that they are in no mood to let their prized assets leave on the cheap, meaning Liverpool may have to part with a club-record sum if they are to do business with the Portuguese powerhouses again following Darwin Nunez’s big-money move to Anfield.
Why Liverpool could sign both Jude Bellingham and Enzo Fernandez
Now, it almost goes without saying but £103 million would take an almighty chunk out of Liverpool’s transfer budget. How on god’s green earth could the Reds afford to sign both Enzo and Jude Bellingham, with both players valued in the region of a nine-figure sum?
Well, as football finance expert Mo Chatra points out on Twitter, it is unlikely that both fees would be paid up front in their entirety. The payments could be spread out across a number of windows, giving Liverpool the requisite wriggle room to bring in two of Europe’s most exciting young midfielders in the same summer.
Take Luis Diaz, for instance. He could set Liverpool back £49 million with add-ons, but cost just £37 million up front (Sky Sports). Only three-quarters of Darwin Nunez’s potential £85 million fee was paid to Benfica in June, meanwhile. The relationship between Liverpool and Benfica could stand Klopp and co in good stead too; Enzo now at the top of the Germany’s post-Christmas wishlist.
‘Extraordinary’ Enzo
“He is an extraordinary player. Very complete,” says former Liverpool winger Maxi Rodriguez. “Elite players, playing for the national team, have to be like that.
“(You need) speed of thought, and knowing how to locate yourself (on the pitch). You don’t have to run 15 kilometres. If you run a lot, it catches up with you. He’s a very interesting player.”
Of course, a proposed takeover would also help facilitate two high-profile, and extremely big-money arrivals. The Fenway Sports Group, who have come under fire both from supporters and from Klopp himself due to a perceived lack of investment of late, have placed the six-time European champions up for sale. Though Liverpool’s situation may have been complicated by the Glazers doing similar with Manchester United.
Liverpool could also rather further funds by moving on from fringe players such as Curtis Jones and Joe Gomez.
“I think he should go to Liverpool. That’s my view,” former Crystal Palace chairman Simon Jordan talks talkSPORT of Bellingham (7th December, 10.40am).
“I don’t think he ends up at PSG. I think he either ends up in Spain or in England. I’d like to think it’s England because we’ve produced this talent. I think there are more compelling leagues than the French league for him to play in.
“If he wants to go and play for the Harlem Globetrotters of PSG, I think that’s one thing. If he wants to play significant football, the Premier League or La Liga are the two destinations I would advocate.”
Liverpool could also bring in Sven Mislintat as Ward’s successor (Sky Sports). Mislintat spent over a decade as Dortmund’s chief scout, winning a double alongside Klopp in 2011. His connections with the BVB board could give Liverpool the edge for Bellingham.
A new midfield trio for a new era
In addition to Enzo and Bellingham, Liverpool also appear to be stepping up their interest in a ‘world-class’ battle-axe labelled ‘the best defensive midfielder’ at the Qatar World Cup. Talks with Fiorentina and Morocco enforcer Sofyan Amrabat are underway, Sky Germany reporter Florian Plettenberg says. Both Klopp and sporting director Julian Ward are huge fans of a tireless, tenacious, seemingly irrepressible number six in the N’Golo Kante mould.
FootMercato, meanwhile, claim that Amrabat’s camp have already met with Klopp regarding a potential move to Merseyside in 2023. Amrabat is valued at around £35 million. Whether or not he arrives too, forming an entirely new-look Liverpool midfield alongside Bellingham and Enzo Fernandez, remains to be seen. But, with the rest of Klopp’s roster largely well-stocked, Liverpool can potentially head into the New Year safe in the knowledge that only one area of their squad needs strengthening. Almost every penny of their budget can be spent on midfield reinforcements, without fear of being left short elsewhere.
Amrabat could also be the perfect foil for both Enzo and Bellingham; the tempo-setting Charlie Watts to Bellingham’s swaggering Jagger and Enzo’s free-wheeling Keith Richards. With those three starting together at the heart of Klopp’s engine room, expect Liverpool to start producing beautiful music once again after a season of bum notes.
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