The Athletic’s James Pearce has claimed that ‘it’s inevitable’ that Liverpool will be making transfers late in the summer transfer window, in an interview on the Kenn7 podcast.
Liverpool got their first summer signing done early, with the arrival of Ibrahima Konate, who will officially be a Liverpool player as of 1st July after a deal was agreed between the Reds and RB Leipzig, but Pearce believes that Liverpool will also be doing business late in the window this summer.
When asked about Liverpool potentially pursuing a deal for a forward, with Divock Origi expected to leave the Reds this summer, Pearce said…
“I think anything like that will be later on in the window.
“Liverpool don’t report back to pre-season till the 12th of July. I think, ideally, Klopp would love to have the squad pretty much where he wants it by then, but I think also he will know that’s just not realistic this summer with the Euros, with the Copa America, with the way that the transfer market is with the lack of money that’s sloshing around at the moment as [the pandemic] continues to take its toll.
“I think despite the fact that ideally you want to get things done early, I think it’s inevitable that there’ll be a lot of business late on.”
TIF Thoughts on Liverpool’s summer ahead…
With a busy summer of football with the Euros and Copa America, it would be no surprise if Liverpool are holding off on transfers as it may also have an effect on outgoings, with players like Xherdan Shaqiri, who has been linked with a move away from Anfield, away at the European Championships.
Liverpool’s signing of Konate was business that was sorted early by the club after their centre-back woes last season saw the Reds lose Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip all to long-term injuries, meaning that the signing of a central defender became a priority for them this summer.
As Pearce mentioned, the pandemic may also be a reason for Liverpool to delay their transfer dealings this window, with football feeling the financial effects of the virus across every level, which could mean that some clubs look to offload players before bringing any more in. Some suggest that the swap deal may become more popular in the post-pandemic transfer market.
During a recent episode of the Here We Go podcast, Fabrizio Romano claimed that Liverpool may need to offload players before they sign any more, therefore justifying Pearce’s theory that Liverpool’s business may be left until later on in the window than Klopp would like, but with Manchester City being linked with Harry Kane, Chelsea with Erling Haaland and Manchester United looking to bring in Jadon Sancho, will LFC fans grow frustrated this summer?