THERE is something about doing shows that concentrates the mind. Yesterday we recorded our transfer show, The Gutter, and had a big chat about Virgil van Dijk, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Mohamed Salah among others.
The most bullish I got was about van Dijk. I’m worried van Dijk isn’t a panacea, a solution to all of our concerns. But what securing him would do is send an unequivocal message; in an environment where all of our rivals will be signing centre-backs it would be excellent if we could land the most highly-prized domestically. If it doesn’t happen alarm bells shouldn’t start ringing but if it does happen then it is Liverpool punching their weight.
van Dijk signing, first and foremost, means Liverpool’s third-choice centre-back is Joel Matip or Dejan Lovren. That could well be the strongest since it was Sami Hyypia or Daniel Agger which is over 10 years ago. Both Matip and Lovren have their injury issues. Lucas Leiva deputised well at times through the season, not least against the top scorer in the country, and Ragnar Klavan didn’t let himself down. But neither would think themselves in the class of Matip or Lovren or van Dijk.
Gareth Roberts compares van Dijk’s style to Sami Hyypia in our most recent Gutter show
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The most excited I found myself was around Salah, who nearly signed for Liverpool back in 2013. His comments recently about that deal sound like a man trying to clean a slate. I’m glad he makes the effort but I don’t care if he called Alan Hansen a prick and set fire to copies of Revolver in 2013 – have you seen how fast he can run? The answer is very fast. Very fast indeed. YouTube videos can be edited for many things, but a lad running dead fast is a lad running dead fast. With the ball at his feet and without he looks lightning. This obviously helps him score one goal in every two games in Italy but he clearly has the quality to do that too.
The idea of Salah and Sadio Mane either side of Roberto Firmino with Philippe Coutinho in behind is genuinely exciting. It’s what an unplayable front four could look like. That shouldn’t be end the of Liverpool’s spending in the front three. I would be looking to add another pacey option and then look at centre forward if Daniel Sturridge goes. But that front four could well break 70 league goals between them if they click and improve *slightly* on their return from this season. That’s not to be sniffed at.
Another from the recent Gutter show as Neil Atkinson talks about his excitement over Salah
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The biggest change of heart I had was around Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. For too long burdened by the moniker “The Ox” and a strange situation at Arsenal where he never entirely gets momentum up I thought he flattered to deceive. After listening to Andrew Mangan of Arseblog the situation may actually be the opposite. Stuck doing too many dirty jobs for the team he hasn’t been able to show what he is actually good at. Having had a relatively injury-free season, at the age of 23, the hopes may well be he has put that phase of his career behind him. As Andrew spoke I grew excited about what the player could do for Liverpool, how signing him adds a great deal to the squad.
In this clip Neil addresses question marks over Oxlade-Chamberlain’s mentality
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What links all three of these players – and, indeed Naby Keita – is pace. They all get around the pitch quickly. I often cite Alex Ferguson when talking about transfers. I think looking at any summer and wondering what Ferguson would do with a squad of players is always worth doing. Ferguson would address a defensive weakness with a big fee. And he would add as many quality attackers as he could get his hands on.
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Solah started his career at left-back; anyone think Jurgen could persuade him to play that role, going for the “get as many boss lads on the pitch as possible” tactic?
Salah*
Wild theory but I actually think that he’d play Oxlade-Chambarlain there if we sign him.
He did not start his career at left back. He was a striker at El Mojakloon. Basel made him a winger. He’s never ever been a left back.
Salah has had an excellent season but I’ll be honest, any time I’ve seen him I always thought he was quick and but not particularly savvy, a kind of deluxe Tony Daley. Hopefully if we get him he’Il turn out to be ace. I’ve no issue with spunking loads of cash on van dijk either but I’m still ambiguous about the Ox. It’d be great if we pulled a few crackers out of the bag and if some of the lads we already have, like Trent, Woodburn and Grujic, turned out to be so brilliant it saved us a bundle in the long run.
Ambivalent, even, not ambiguous.
Van Dijk is using our interest to bump his wages up when he joins City. And he has had a bad injury. Matip is good on the ball, we need someone big and hard and quick to partner him.
I jope we get Salah but as an Egyptian we will have the same Africa cup of nations problem as with Mane.
For Klopp’s style of play it is essential that we get some full-backs who can produce something in the final third,especially against the bus parkers.
You’re talking nonsense about Van Dijk. He’s turned down City to join us.
News is that a City is a done deal mate
Echo rubbished that report.
Some thoughts:
– Sturridge stays, being pictured in the new away kit.
– Matip has no injury issues whatsoever. Some pundit came up with that and everyone keeps repeating it. I cannot recall any major injury of him (spoken from a medical perspective). Being banned from playing due to Cameroon’s request hardly counts as an “injury”.
– I couldn’t care less, who Klopp brings in. In any case, it will be an upgrade. If Chelsea gets van Dijk? Fine with me. He is an excellent player and got even PL experience, but it won’t be the end of Liverpools evolution.
Daft comment on Van Dijk. He’s the most important player we can get.
Nonsense about Matip. He missed the start of the season with an injury and then he missed 10 more games with the same injury from November into January. And then he got banned over the AFCON thing.
Matip played 28 pl games for us. He missed 4 due to the AFC thing so it’s 6 games through injury….hardly a shocking number. In 5 seasons at Schalke he played over 30 out of 34 league games.
Injury prone isn’t really a fair label
The Ox still leaves me cold. For the time being, I’d rather live in my fantasy bubble and imagine we are negotiating with Lacazette as we speak (obviously, a different set of “we”).
Similarly, I’ve been living on the dream of Douglas Costa, an excellent player who, like Coutinho and Sturridge before, has needles and pins from sitting on a bench too long. Salah, that heartbreaker, was leaving me lukewarm, at least until I watched those YouTube clips. If PL defenders are anywhere near as slow as the the ones in Serie A, we’re in for a treat. I’ve been mentally substituting him for Moses whenever I think back to the demise of 13/14, and it’s hard not to feel that, well, anything would have been better than Moses. But Salah would have been a nice alternative.
I have a weird (for me) sense of calm over the Van Dijk deal. Not sure if it confidence or resignation, truth be told. But I’m not worked up about it. I will be fist pumping furiously, gnashing my teeth, and losing my glasses (if I wore them) if and when it happens, but I’m not grabbing on endlessly to whatever click bait will have me. I have no Plan B in my head, so a failure to sign him will probably end with my existential floor dropping out. So the equilibrium is puzzling.
Keita is another one. Saw some clips, didn’t fancy him. Saw other clips, started to fancy him. Maybe he comes, maybe he goes. I’m getting positively zen in my years. Which, of course, is nowhere near the truth. I simply reserve my hopes and angst for pace and goals, two of my favorite things in life.
The best part is that I don’t really care much what business other clubs do this summer. I feel like the right signings, plus another year of experience for our young squad, will see us arrive to the party all shining and lethal. Fearing no one. Trust in Klopp. Make us dream. We go again. YNWA