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On Thursday, Chelsea shocked the footballing world by agreeing a deal to sign Timo Werner from RB Leipzig for a fee in the region of £53 million. The striker had seemed destined for a switch to Liverpool. Werner himself appeared keen on a switch to Merseyside, where he would get the opportunity to work with Jurgen Klopp.
The 24-year-old has been in fine form this season, and has netted 25 goals in just 29 Bundesliga matches, including four since the season restarted after the coronavirus enforced break. He has also netted four times in the Champions League, with Leipzig having reached the quarter finals.
The Germany international had been expected to add to Liverpool’s impressive array of attacking options this summer- more firepower to an already exciting frontline. Mo Salah, Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino have netted 49 goals between them in all competitions this season, and are one of the world’s most potent attacking trios.
The Reds are running away with the title this season. They are 25 points ahead of Manchester City ahead of the Premier League’s resumption on June 17. It will surely only be a matter of weeks before they complete one of the most dominant title wins in English football history.
What will Liverpool look to do in the summer?
They may wish to strengthen their squad in the transfer window this summer though. Backup goalkeeper Adrian was their only senior incoming last summer, and although Takumi Minamino moved to Anfield from Red Bull Salzburg in January, he has yet to start a Premier League game for Liverpool.
Liverpool are likely to lose both Salah and Mane during the African Cup of Nations early next year. They may wish to add a little more depth in attack, especially now they have missed out on Werner.
Here are five players they could target this summer. Although none of these players are like-for-like replacements, they'd add great value to the Liverpool front line.
#1 Ousmane Dembele (Barcelona)
In looking for a backup player, Liverpool could do with someone with the versatility to play across the front three, and they would get that in Dembele. The Frenchmen left Jurgen Klopp’s old club, Borussia Dortmund, to sign for Barcelona in 2017 for a fee of around £135 million including bonuses, making him the fourth most expensive signing in football history.
Things haven’t worked out for the winger, and due to a combination of form and fitness, he has never really settled in Spain. At 23, time is most certainly on his side, and he may benefit from a new start at Liverpool.
Liverpool have been linked with a loan move in recent days, while it has also been suggested that Barcelona will look to sell a number of players to raise transfer funds this summer.
#2 Adama Traore (Wolves)
There can’t have been many players in European football who have made as much improvement in their game as Adama Traore has over the past 12 months.
The Wolves man was seen as someone with all the pace and energy in the world, but with a complete lack of a final product in the final third. He was seen as quite a useful player, but not one who could really make it at the highest level at a club like Liverpool.
This season, it has been a different story however, and Traore has been outstanding for Wolves as they look to secure a European place. He has scored four times and provided seven assists in the Premier League this season, a vast improvement from just one of each last year.
Traore will not come cheap, as he is now such a vital starter in this Wolves side. But his game would continue to improve if he were given the opportunity of playing with even better players at Liverpool.
#3 Ferran Torres (Valencia)
Jurgen Klopp has made a name for taking young players, and help coach them to the next level of their game.
Even at Liverpool, the front three of Salah, Mane and Firmino have always been exceptionally talented, but they have become truly world-class under the management of Klopp. If he wants to help create another top-class talent, he could do it again with Valencia's Ferran Torres, one of Europe's highest rated players.
Torres may not be someone who English audiences are particularly familiar with, but he would most certainly fit Klopp’s system. He is two-footed, can play on both wings, and has the pace to trouble defenders. Despite being just 20, he has already appeared 88 times for Valencia at a senior level, and has become one of their more important players.
At Liverpool, he would have the opportunity to learn from both Klopp, and some of the finest players in the world. He won’t come cheap, but given his undoubted potential, he may be worth it.
#4 Willian (Chelsea)
Willian may not really be the calibre of player that Liverpool are looking for, but nobody knows what the transfer market could look like in the era after the coronavirus. It may be the case that the Reds are forced to settle for a free transfer, rather than spending big money on a younger talent. They chose not to activate Werner’s £53 million release clause, so you have to wonder how much they are willing to spend this summer.
The Brazilian looks almost certain to leave Chelsea this summer, given the arrival of Hakim Ziyech, and Frank Lampard looking to build a younger squad. At 31, Willian still has a lot left in him, and could be a shrewd addition at Anfield this summer. He can play on both wings and has an eye for goal, and without a doubt, he would improve the Liverpool squad.
Some may question his form for Chelsea this season, but he still has the quality to deliver when it is needed, and off the bench, he could be vital for Liverpool.
#5 Philippe Coutinho (Barcelona)
This seems incredibly unlikely, and it almost certainly won’t happen, but you never know in football. Coutinho made his name in a six year spell at Liverpool, during which he became one of the top players in the Premier League.
Those performances caught the eyes of those abroad. In January 2018 he completed a dream move to Barcelona, for an initial £105 million potentially rising to £142 million.
But all has not gone well in the years since that move. After an underwhelming 18 months at the Nou Camp, the Brazilian was loaned out to Bayern Munich, who have now chosen to not make that move permanent. It seems there is no way back for him at Barcelona, so he will be on the move again this summer, potentially on loan.
Coutinho would be returning to familiar surroundings at Liverpool, and he would be welcomed back with open arms. But the issue may be financial once more, and whether the Reds are prepared to pay his hefty wage bill is a valid question.
