If there’s one thing football fans love more than a transfer, it’s an attacking transfer! Nothing excites supporters more than their side signing a new star who, all going well, will score them lots of goals.
Liverpool have spent the past 18 months completing such business as club bosses went about revamping the Reds’ ageing attack. Luis Diaz, Darwin Nunez, and Cody Gakpo all came in in successive transfer windows, as Sadio Mane, Divock Origi, Takumi Minamino, and now Roberto Firmino all moved on.
In truth, finding long-term replacements for Mane and Firmino was no enviable task, but the early signs from Diaz, Nunez, and Gakpo do suggest Liverpool have recruited well. Throw in Mohamed Salah and Diogo Jota both signing new long-term contracts last summer and Jurgen Klopp can call upon the talents of five quality attacking options.
As a result, it would perhaps be a surprise if the Reds strengthened their front-line further this summer following Firmino’s exit, having seemingly signed his replacement in advance last January in Gakpo. Besides, midfield is very much their latest priority with Alexis Mac Allister already the first signing through the door.
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However, Jurgen Klopp would admit, when asked if he was in the market for a new centre-back, that goalkeeper was the only position Liverpool aren’t open to strengthening.
“We look in all departments apart from goalkeeper at the moment,” the German admitted to reporters last month. “Yes, if there is a good one (centre-back) out there, I would not deny it. That’s all. We look at all areas of the pitch, definitely.”
There could be some sense to the Reds signing a new forward this summer, despite already possessing five senior options. Both Diaz and Jota missed the majority of last season with long-term injuries, after all, while Nunez was prone to setbacks of his own as he endured a rollercoaster first season in England.
Meanwhile, Liverpool are likely to be without the services of Salah next January and February if Egypt, as expected, qualify for next year’s Africa Cup of Nations later this summer.
Of course, the Reds still have the likes of youngsters Harvey Elliott and Ben Doak in reserve if required, and have hardly been trigger-happy on the transfer front before when facing the prospect of losing their African players to mid-season international tournament duty.
But if Liverpool were to be tempted into signing an additional senior forward, one world-class option is actually believed to currently be available for a cut-price fee.
Paulo Dybala joined AS Roma on a free transfer from Juventus last summer, signing a three-year contract, and has enjoyed a memorable first season in the Eternal City.
He would record 18 goals and eight assists from 38 appearances, and also scored the opener in last month’s Europa League final defeat to Sevilla. Meanwhile, he would win the World Cup alongside Mac Allister for Argentina in Qatar.
Despite only joining Roma last year, Dybala’s future is still the subject of speculation courtesy of a release clause in his contract. The forward can reportedly join any overseas club for just €12m (£10.25m), while any Serie A side can snap him up for €20m unless Roma ‘cancel’ it by activating a salary rise from €3.8m to €6m.
90min would report last month that his representatives have been in touch with a number of clubs as a result, making sure they are aware of the forward’s potential cut-price availability this summer.
Dybala would side-step talk about his future and the release clause back in March. Speaking to Marca, he said: “Surely, we’ll talk about this later on. My future is here, I want to bring Roma as high as possible and I think we can do it. I don’t know what will happen in the future. The next games are the most important things.”
Meanwhile, Mourinho would concede that while the forward was talented enough to play for a ‘bigger’ club, he urged him to stay put at Roma.
“My feeling is that he was seeking the joy, he had lost more than confidence,” the Portuguese told Sky Sport Italia. “He found it here. He has found a coach who understands him, a crowd that loves him and a space on the field in which to be a leader with his quality and personality.
“Dybala is a nice boy. He has the quality to play for the biggest clubs in the world, but he has found joy here.”
Yet with Roma’s season ending in Europa League final disappointment, and having missed out on Champions League qualification, the Argentine’s future remains the subject of speculation.
Now there has been no suggestion of Liverpool being interested in Dybala, who would respond with four clapping emojis after compatriot Mac Allister completed his own move to Anfield, despite plenty of speculation linking them with the Argentina international in the past. For all the Premier League sides who have been linked with his services this time around, the Reds’ name has been absent.
It would admittedly be a surprise if they did suddenly show interest in a 29-year-old too, with Thiago Alcantara, Ragnar Klavan, Alex Manninger, Adrian, and Andy Lonergan the only players aged at least 29 who Klopp has signed during his time at Anfield.
But if Liverpool were in the market for a new forward, the opportunity to sign £10.25m Dybala for just £10.25m would be one of the best options around for a proven talent this summer.
Prior to joining Roma, Dybala would score 115 goals in 293 appearances across seven seasons for Juventus as he established himself as one of the most-feared forwards in Serie A. Including his first year at Roma and final season at Palermo in 2014/15, he has scored double-figures in all but one of the past nine seasons, breaking the 15-goal barrier six times and the 20-goal barrier twice.
Yet there is more to the Argentine than just goals, with him also recording 48 assists during his time in Turin, including a career-best 14 assists in 2019/20, and setting up 66 goals in total since 2014/15.
While predominantly a central forward, capable of leading the line or playing behind a front man, he’s also versatile enough to play on either flank or in midfield. As a left-footed player, that would make him a direct alternative to Salah as an inverted forward on the right-hand side, with the Reds currently possessing no such senior option.
An excellent finisher, both inside and outside the box, Dybala is good on the ball and has proven his playmaking abilities setting up team-mates with his vision, link-up play, and passing. Also pacey and a skilled dribbler with a low centre of gravity, he is very much a threat on the counter-attack, as well as a dead ball specialist.
And in Italy, he is also heralded as a hard-working player, known for his stamina and defensive contribution off the ball.
Add all that together and you paint a picture of a player who could certainly suit Klopp’s style of play at Anfield, and be a valuable attacking option for Liverpool either down the middle or cutting in from the right following the departure of Firmino, and, to a lesser extent, back-up option Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
For now, the prospect of Dybala moving to Anfield is nothing more than a fantasy. But, with Liverpool having already signed one Argentina World Cup winner for a cut-price fee this summer, there is very much an opening to bring in another.
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