Liverpool begin exploring move for £30m Spurs star

Mohamed Salah’s summer exit is dominating the headlines, but Liverpool are going to lose a number of mainstays at the end of the season.

Following Milos Kerkez’s arrival last year, Andy Robertson’s playing time has diminished, and he will leave on a free. Now, chatter concerning Alisson Becker’s future is getting louder, Juventus keen on landing the veteran goalkeeper in a few months.

Curiously, Arne Slot is not expected to be among the departed, with the under-fire manager extended the ultimate hand of faith by Michael Edwards and FSG, even as so many call for time on the Dutchman’s tenure.

If Slot is here to stay, it’s important that the fanbase gets behind him. He won the Premier League last season, and Liverpool are going to need stability as they prepare for another big-money rebuild.

Liverpool begin work on Salah replacement

Salah is irreplaceable, but in regard to the attacking right wing, Liverpool are going to need to find someone who can supplement Alexander Isak and bring goals and assists to Anfield.

As many as Salah has clinched over the years? It’s unlikely.

Still, Liverpool have a number of exciting targets in mind. Bayern Munich’s Michael Olise is FSG’s dream target, though signing him this summer is a pipe dream.

RB Leipzig winger Yan Diomande is probably the new top target, with the £87m-rated Ivory Coast international, who is only 20 years old, valued at £87m.

If Liverpool plan on being a touch more cost-efficient, they may accelerate a bid for Paris Saint-Germain outcast Randal Kolo Muani, who is currently on loan at Tottenham Hotspur.

That’s according to La Gazzetta dello Sport, who reveal that Juventus (where Kolo Muani thrived on loan last season) have been joined by Slot’s Liverpool in a race for the French forward.

The 27-year-old has suffered in London this season, but FSG officials believe that it has not been a fair reflection of Kolo Muani’s skillset and are showing ‘strong’ interest in a player who many cost around £30m.

His versatility across the frontline could combat the long-term injury sustained by Hugo Ekitike, but this might actually turn out to be a disaster akin to that one-time signing of Mario Balotelli.

Why Kolo Muani could be Liverpool’s new Balotelli

Ah, Balotelli. There was a sort of nervous excitement when Liverpool welcomed the notorious Italian to the club in 2014, but it quickly became clear that the transfer team had made a mistake.

As with Salah, replacing Luis Suarez was always going to be an impossible job, but Liverpool still managed to spectacularly fumble the replacing of the deadly Uruguay striker, with Rickie Lambert and Balotelli and co hardly thriving in the No. 7’s spot.

From the horse’s mouth, it was “the worst mistake” of Balotelli’s career, and Kolo Muani could very well be a repeat of that blunder. Kolo Muani is, of course, a talented attacker, but he hasn’t impressed at Spurs, who are albeit in the deepest pit of their lives, and he was even branded as “lazy” by journalist Kyle Freegard during one phase of play in the Champions League against Borussia Dortmund, failing to chase down a loose ball.

His dynamism is all well and good, but Kolo Muani simply doesn’t hold the keys, and with such a mammoth task in front of them, FSG would make a big error in signing a winger who has only scored one goal from 25 appearances in the Premier League.

The France international, who is on £607k-per-week at PSG, simply isn’t a tenable solution for Liverpool. Balotelli, remember, arrived at Anfield with a prolific spell in Italy with AC Milan behind him, as well as Premier League experience with title-winning Manchester City.

Reporter Sam Tabeteau remarked that Kolo Muani struggled “even before Spurs’ collapse”, and while Liverpool will expect to punch with more strength next season, they need fighters, not players who have failed to adapt to the Premier League and would potentially struggle to outstrip even this current iteration of Salah at Liverpool.