Liverpool are set to sign Ibrahima Konate in the coming weeks if reports are to be believed, but the Frenchman’s arrival will signify the end of Ozan Kabak’s Anfield career.
The Turkish defender arrived on Merseyside in January, and it was thought that the Reds had pulled off something of a coup when they negotiated an £18m option to buy Kabak.
However, if Fabrizio Romano is right, Liverpool aren’t going to trigger that option to purchase the defender, and to be honest, that doesn’t make much sense to us.
£18m for a 21-year-old with 10 international caps to his name is a great deal no matter how you look at it, and the reality is that he’s probably already worth more than that.
Granted, Transfermarkt valuations aren’t the best indicator, they usually vastly undervalue players, but according to them he’s worth at least £22.5m, and that’s a conservative estimate – he’s previously been valued at £31m by Schalke.
The reality is that Michael Edwards had negotiated an absolutely brilliant deal for Kabak, and the Reds aren’t going to make the most of it.
Yes, Kabak would probably be the Reds’ fourth-choice centre-back if he came in, and yes, they probably don’t need him, but as an investment, you’ll struggle to find a player who will provide better value.
We have to reiterate that Kabak has only just turned 21 and he’s already been putting in Man of the Match performances in Champions League knockout games.
Defenders who are that good at such a young age are like gold, and while Liverpool have hopefully uncovered another in Konate, it’d be daft to turn down a bargain deal for Kabak just because of the sell-on value he’d provide in a few years’ time.
We live in a world where the likes of Nathan Ake are moving for £40m after being relegated with Bournemouth or William Saliba is moving for £27m after just 16 senior league games, so with that context, Kabak looks like a player worth a lot more than that, considering he’s looked comfortable playing Champions League football this term.
The fact that Leicester City want him should tell you all you need to know. After all, they have a knack of unearthing centre-back gems on the cheap with the likes of Harry Maguire, Wesley Fofana and Caglar Soyuncu all joining the Foxes for bargain prices in recent years.
Signing Kabak for £18m would have been a great move for Liverpool and it would likely have been a deal that saw them earn a profit in a few years’ time, but it seems as though they’re going to turn him down, and that could be a decision that costs Liverpool millions.
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