The clouds hanging in front of Liverpool‘s summer transfer window are beginning to clear.
Mohamed Salah and Andy Robertson are leaving on free transfers. Alisson Becker is linked with Juventus. Curtis Jones, the new Scouser in the team, has only started 13 Premier League games this season and is angling for a change of scenery.
However, Ibrahima Konate finally seems to be inching toward a new contract at Anfield. The France centre-back is out of contract in a matter of months, but this is a big boost for the Reds, especially with Giovanni Leoni pushing to return from a long-term layoff and the £60m Jeremy Jacquet arriving this summer.
Liverpool need sweeping changes, still. Funnily, in attack. It’s certainly not ‘funny hah hah’, with Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak both falling by the wayside this season after joining for a combined £240m figure. Hugo Ekitike has been the shining light, but he’ll be lucky to play again before 2027 after rupturing his Achilles against Paris Saint-Germain.
Signing a versatile and high-profile forward is crucial, one or maybe two.
Liverpool open talks for £60m forward
Liverpool need forwards, and they need players who will have an instant effect on a team desperate for resurgence. Yan Diomande appears to be the top target to replace Salah, and while he is only 20, the RB Leipzig star has the potential to be a superstar.
That’s all well and good, but Ekitike’s long-term layoff has complicated things for Slot’s side, and another dynamic attacker could go down a treat for the struggling Premier League champions, especially with Cody Gakpo still flattering to deceive on the lefthand side.
According to the Daily Mail, Liverpool could land the perfect upgrade in AC Milan’s Rafael Leao, joining Real Madrid and their Manchester rivals in the race for the 26-year-old forward.
Leao would command a fee of around £60m, and though this is a big figure, it would give FSG wiggle room in searching for another forward, such as Diomande.
Sporting director Richard Hughes, who is a polyglot, has already started making enquiries, and he’s learned that Milan would be willing to sell this summer for the right price.
Why Leao would be an upgrade on Gakpo
Instrumental for Milan over the years, Leao has been redeveloped from a left winger into a prolific centre-forward this season, scoring nine goals and supplying three assists across 25 Serie A matches, 20 starts.
|
Rafael Leao – Career Stats by Position |
||
|---|---|---|
|
Position |
Apps |
Goals + Assists |
|
Left winger |
27 |
61 + 56 |
|
Centre-forward |
92 |
31 + 8 |
|
Attacking midfielder |
20 |
3 + 5 |
|
Right winger |
3 |
1 + 0 |
Once hailed as “one of the best left wingers in the world” by analyst and Como scout Ben Mattinson, the Portugal star is now thriving in a new area, clinical in the danger area.
His ability to cut between the wing and a more central attacking role does offer shades of Gakpo at Liverpool, but the sense is that Leao plays with more fluency and dynamism, more nuanced in his performances.
Gakpo, 26, has been so predictable this season. No Premier League player has seen more shots blocked than his 30, and that is a result of cutting inside on the edge of the area. It’s a familiar picture, right?
Leao, meanwhile, has revelled in his streamlined role at number nine, still showcasing plenty of creativity by creating eight big chances for I Rossoneri, who are second in the league but miles behind their rivals Inter Milan.
Losing Leao will only dampen their chances of tasting the title once again, but Liverpool will not care for that, especially when considering the kind of effect that he would have on the squad’s left attacking side.
While Ekitike’s injury does preclude the event of Gakpo’s departure this summer, the 17-year-old Ngumoha is only going to improve with age, already playing with a directness to match his innate skill and pace on the ball.
Gakpo is an efficient forward, but he’s not a focal point. This season has shown that, with the Dutchman branded a “Europa League-level player” by analyst Raj Chohan and leaving all of Merseyside clamouring for the young Ngumoha to earn more minutes.
Estevao Willian and Lamine Yamal have both picked up muscular injuries in the past week, and perhaps that makes a strong comment on the importance of easing prodigious talents into the limelight, even if they are capable of making a difference each week.
Gakpo will remain at Anfield – for now. But it’s not difficult to imagine Leao firing on all cylinders as an electric addition to Slot’s Liverpool frontline, and if his positional rival stays put for the time being, in the long run, this signing will spell the end for one of the club’s biggest underperformers this season.
A £50m superstar: Liverpool in talks to sign their new Rio Ngumoha
Liverpool are hoping to make a number of attacking signings this summer.
