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Liverpool should test Real Madrid transfer stance after Jude Bellingham decision made

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Liverpool should test Real Madrid transfer stance after Jude Bellingham decision made

We already know where Jude Bellingham isn’t going this summer. But that doesn’t mean that the former Liverpool target is going to be staying put. Liverpool after all was not the only club interested in his services.

Borussia Dortmund will be desperate to keep hold of him. Especially as the club looks to finally be catching up with rivals Bayern Munich, with a genuine battle for the Bundesliga title this season, as only one point separates Borussia Dortmund and the perennial German champion.

It feels like Dortmund is building a project, and Bellingham is the central figure. So of course, it’s going to take a huge sum for any club to lure him away from the Signal Iduna Park this summer.

READ MORE: Liverpool can land ace ‘better than Kevin de Bruyne’ for $25m discount with second transfer bid

READ MORE: Liverpool a ‘step ahead’ on $50m transfer as talks begin and two priority targets identified

The kind of fee Liverpool cannot afford. The kind of fee only very few clubs can.

One of them is Real Madrid, and as Fabrizio Romano writes in The Guardian, it’s the Spanish giant who is reportedly closing in on completing a deal for Bellingham.

Considering the amount of blows Real Madrid has dealt Liverpool in the last few years, Bellingham joining the club would be another item to add to the list, which already contains Champions League final defeats and transfer hijacks — such as Aurélien Tchouaméni last summer.

However, while the news will be bitterly disappointing for Liverpool supporters — and seeing Bellingham in a Real Madrid shirt would definitely be painful — there’s a chance the Reds could actually benefit from this transfer.

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Real Madrid will have to pay a huge figure to bring the England international to the club, which means sales will have to be made in order to maintain compliance with Financial Fair Play rules. But not only that, Real Madrid’s midfield already boasts an impressive list of players, which means player sales won’t just be necessary from a fiscal point of view but also in the sense of maintaining some semblance of squad harmony.

Some of the club’s midfielders will be looking to move on. And one of them might be the aforementioned Tchouaméni, who Liverpool so desperately wanted last summer.

Last month a report by El Nacional suggested that Real Madrid was not entirely content with Tchouaméni who had not ‘lived up to expectations.’ As a result, the report suggested the Spanish giants were considering the possibility of selling him already, and Liverpool was monitoring the situation.

Jude Bellingham’s Real Madrid transfer could open the way for Liverpool and Aurélien Tchouaméni.

(Image: David S. Bustamante/Soccrates/Getty Images)

Bellingham’s arrival would only complicate Tchouaméni’s situation further. His playing time would be reduced even more and if the report is accurate that could very well see the Frenchman move to pastures new.

Of course, it’s not ideal for Liverpool to buy a player who hasn’t quite kicked on and has struggled to make an impact during this season. But the Reds were huge admirers of Tchouaméni, who is still young and ticks a lot of boxes in terms of what Jürgen Klopp needs and has lacked this season in the middle of the park.

If Real Madrid is open to cutting its losses and allowing him to leave for a reasonable fee that’s affordable for FSG, Liverpool might just be tempted to register interest once again. And so as one door closes, another one might just open up for Liverpool once again.

Liverpool will not sign Bellingham this summer, but in Tchouaméni the club might just have an exciting alternative, who could quench the fans’ thirst for the England international.

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Liverpool has found a Jack Grealish ‘upgrade’ and ace who left Pep Guardiola speechless knows it

Liverpool, as a team, doesn’t draw too many fouls. Across the whole season in the Premier League, it has only won 295.

That’s the third lowest in the division, with only West Ham (285) and Manchester United (263) ranking lower. But that doesn’t mean that the Reds don’t have players who are free-kick magnets.

One of those is January signing Cody Gakpo. During the first half of the season with PSV, he ranked inside the Eredivisie top 10 for fouls drawn per game on 2.1, and that trend has continued at Anfield.

READ MORE: Liverpool should test Real Madrid transfer stance after Jude Bellingham decision made

READ MORE: Liverpool can land ace ‘better than Kevin de Bruyne’ for $25m discount with second transfer bid

Since he joined Liverpool, no Reds player has been fouled more often than Gakpo in the Premier League (24). Remarkably, he already ranks fourth in the squad for total fouls drawn on 24, behind only Mohamed Salah (31), Harvey Elliott (25) and Thiago (25).

If you look at it on a per-90 basis instead, it’s Luis Díaz, sidelined through injury for much of the season, who leads the way on 2.09, with Gakpo (1.74) just behind Thiago (1.8) in third.

And extending our focus to the Premier League as a whole, Gakpo ranks in the upper echelon of players (inside the top 40). Manchester City’s Jack Grealish, for reference, leads the way on 3.35, with the Crystal Palace duo of Wilfried Zaha (3.1) and Jordan Ayew (2.9) second and third.

Cody Gakpo has been a foul magnet since he joined Liverpool, much like Jack Grealish

Winning fouls may not seem inherently valuable. After all, they often stop promising attacks and leave you with bruised shins. But it does have a number of advantages too.

At the most basic level, it can unlock the supreme dead-ball threat of Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson for Liverpool. Only three teams in the Premier League — Newcastle (97), Brentford and Leeds United (both 89) — have created more chances from these situations than the Reds (79), and Jürgen Klopp’s side leads the way outright when it comes to goals (eight).

Beyond that, they can also be a game-management tool, allowing teams to relieve pressure and swallow up valuable seconds on the clock. This has been particularly useful for Liverpool recently given that it has won its last five games by a single goal, making for some nervous finishes.

And finally, fouls can of course lead to yellow cards for the opposition. Gakpo is something of a specialist in this department, drawing twice as many bookings as any Liverpool player since he arrived.

Rank Player(s) Vol. 1 Cody Gakpo 8 2 Diogo Jota 4 3 Stefan Bajcetic, Kostas Tsimikas 2 4 Five players 1

Two of these came in a single game, the historic 7-0 win over Manchester United, as Gakpo got both Lisandro Martínez and Scott McTominay carded.

These were angry challenges in the midst of a rout, but more often, we see tactical takedowns as the Dutchman drives away from an opponent with a burst of pace.

Brentford wing-back Rico Henry was booked in these circumstances on Saturday, while even the rapid Son Heung-min had his name taken after pulling back a charging Gakpo.

At the start of April, Manchester City’s Rodri was lucky not to be sent off for a second yellow when he halted the forward’s signature driving counter, prompting red shirts to furiously surround the referee.

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Pep Guardiola has heralded his holding midfielder as one of the best around multiple times this season, with the Manchester City boss left speechless after a win over Crystal Palace in the campaign. But while Rodri may leave him with ‘no words’, Gakpo appeared to have his number.

Rodri was let off the hook that time, but it won’t be long before Gakpo contributes to a sending-off. He’s putting the opposition in precarious disciplinary positions, but for now they see it as a worthwhile sacrifice because his runs are so dangerous.

The 24-year-old’s contribution, of course, isn’t all this subtle. He’s also notched six goals and two assists in the Premier League, one more goal contribution than the aforementioned Grealish (who’s scored three and assisted four) despite only joining midway through the season.

A foul magnet and an output merchant arguably makes him an upgrade on what Guardiola has on his disposal. When you consider that Manchester City spent $126m (£100m/€113m) to prize Grealish away, Gakpo represents a massive bargain and a truly multifacted threat.

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‘So you’re telling me there’s a chance’: Carragher leads fans in thinking top four finish is on

So you’re telling me there’s a chance? Jamie Carragher leads Liverpool fans in thinking top four finish is back on after Newcastle and Manchester United suffer defeatsNewcastle and Man United lost to Arsenal and West Ham on Sunday The results leave Liverpool one point outside the top four with three to playThe Reds have managed to pull themselves up from mid table with a great run

Published: 00:53 BST, 8 May 2023 | Updated: 00:53 BST, 8 May 2023

Jamie Carragher and Liverpool’s supporters are starting to believe the could actually complete a remarkable turn around and finish in the top four after Sunday’s results.

Newcastle and Man United suffered defeat to Arsenal and West Ham respectively to leave the Reds just one point below the Champions League qualification places.

United are just above them while the third-placed Magpies have three more points, though both sides have a game in hand on Jurgen Klopp’s side.

With three very winnable games remaining for Liverpool their fans now really think they can do it.

Carragher shared a famous clip from the movie Dumb & Dumber in which Jim Carrey’s character says ‘so you’re telling me there’s a chance’.

Jamie Carragher think Liverpool are now in with a real chance of finishing in the top four

‘Top four, can we hope?’ wrote a fan while another was more confident in saying ‘top four is for us’.

‘I felt that if there was any chance of us making top four then Hammers must win today,’ tweeted another, ‘Now it seems possible.’

Liverpool face Leicester, Aston villa and Southampton in their final three matches.

They have won their last six Premier league games, the most recent coming with Saturday’s 1-0 win over Brentford.

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