Reported Liverpool target Teun Koopmeiners said he is ‘ready’ to leave AZ Alkmaar with Jose Mourinho’s Roma in talks to sign the Eredivisie star, as reported by Calciomercato.
Gini Wijnaldum is not an easy man to replace.
After all, there is hardly an unlimited supply of all-round, all-action enforcers versatile enough to rival that of Daniel Day Lewis.
Koopmeiners, however, may be one of the few. Equally comfortable pulling the strings in his favoured midfield role or when filling in as a ball-playing centre-half, the AZ Alkmaar talisman has it all.
Did we mention he is also a natural-born leader, appointed captain at the age of just 21?
Koopmeiners’ penalty record would make Matt Le Tissier proud too, with many of his 17 goals last season coming from the spot.
Will Mourinho nab Liverpool’s Wijnaldum replacement?
AS reported a few weeks ago that Jurgen Klopp sees the £17 million-rated Koopmeiners as Wijnaldum’s ideal successor.
While AZ fans would be forgiven for wiping a tear from their eye as their talismanic skipper prepares to bid farewell, everyone at Alkmaar would have known, deep down, that this day was coming.
“I’m ready to go,” he said, before admitting that he is in talks over a move to a Roma side who hired Jose Mourinho as Paulo Fonseca’s replacement.
“The contacts with the Giallorossi are going in the right direction. It won’t distract me, but I’m just playing with my cards exposed, even with the media.
“I’m putting it all together right now. The country, the city, the language, the possibilities for my girlfriend, the coach. It has to be perfect for me.”
A born leader on and off the pitch and someone willing to smash through brick walls for his teammates, Koopmeiners may be the rarest of beasts; a modern-day footballer tailor-made for Mourinho.
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