It’s been a long time since we’ve seen Liverpool operate with what you’d call a traditional number nine, but their links to Odsonne Edouard hint that they could soon revert back to that system.
The Reds have used almost exclusively a false nine in the shape of Roberto Firmino in recent years, and while it seems like a long time ago now, the last true successful traditional striker they had was Luis Suarez.
Liverpool of course tried to replace Suarez when he left for Barcelona, but the signings of Mario Balotelli, Christian Benteke and Danny Ings failed to fill that void as all three failed to live up to expectations.
Balotelli and Benteke were supposed to join as a powerhouse strikers who could bully opposition defenders, but unfortunately, neither player found their form at Anfield and they were gone almost as soon as they arrived.
Ings is obviously a different style of striker to Balotelli or Benteke, he’s a fox in the box who gobbles up chances, but injuries hampered his time at Anfield, and he was moved on rather swiftly, joining Southampton where he has since flourished.
Since then, Liverpool have abandoned the idea of using a traditional centre-forward, relying on their wingers to be their main source of goals, but if Edouard joins, he could provide what both Ings and Balotelli were supposed to.
Edouard is able to play as a target man, standing at 6 ft 2 and possessing a lot of strength, he can absolutely dominate any defender he’s up against, but he also has the striking instincts you’d associate with a player like Ings, winning the SPFL Golden Boot in each of the past two seasons.
Of course, the SPFL isn’t the best league in the world, but if you want any more evidence of how lethal Edouard can be, just look at his record for France’s U21s, where he’s netted 15 goals in 10 games.
Liverpool tried two different approaches when Suarez left with Benteke and Balotelli being target men and Ings being a poacher, but if they land Edouard, he can bring the best of both worlds.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
