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DONE DEAL: Liverpool has signed Ajax midfieder ahead of Manchester City this summer €150m

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1 year ago

July 5, 2023

DONE DEAL: Liverpool has signed Ajax midfieder ahead of Manchester City this summer €150m

Liverpool signed Ajax midfielder ahead of Manchester City this summer

Injustice to Manchester City as Liverpool will play The Champions League next Season
Liverpool Will Play The Champions League Next Season As FA Charge Manchester City Over Financial Fair Play

As Man City celebrate their fifth Premier League title in six seasons, the charges hang over them. Liverpool and the others will have to wait a long time for the result.

Blood Red: How Manchester City’s financial lapses could impact Liverpool and Premier League rivals

Just a day after UEFA confirmed they were investigating Manchester City for alleged Financial Fair Play breaches, the Premier League made a similar announcement. It was March 8, 2019.

UEFA have since delivered their verdict, banning Manchester City from the Champions League for two seasons and overturning that verdict at the Court of Arbitration for Sport. By contrast, the Premier League only lodged a complaint in February this year after a four-year investigation.

Meanwhile, Manchester City have won four out of a possible five titles. Liverpool won the other title, while Jurgen Klopp were just a single point clear of Pep Guardiola’s men on two other occasions.

With the recent celebrations, which for the first time saw actual indictments (115 to be exact) rather than mere investigations, one gets the feeling that everyone would welcome a resolution to the situation in one way or another. other. In fact, The Independent claim the Premier League rivals are “furious” at the time the league is taking to resolve these issues.

It’s not just Manchester City. Across Stanley Park, Liverpool’s arch-rivals

Everton have been referred to an independent commission over possible breaches of profit and sustainability rules. The favorite to narrowly avoid relegation on the final day of play is the second straight season the Toffees have been in a relegation battle. The immediate competitors will inevitably be annoyed that there is no verdict.

When the allegations against a team are proven, every season they can play without sanction is another injustice. In this campaign, for example, Arsenal, Leeds United and Leicester would certainly feel the most affected if close rivals were found to have cheated.

Likewise, a quick fix should also be in Manchester City’s best interest. If Sheikh Mansour’s team successfully defends the allegations, they will be saddened that so many of their triumphs have been starred by many, given the current debate on the subject.

However, there is no realistic prospect that this issue will be resolved any time soon. After consulting with legal experts, City AM concluded that it would likely drag on until at least 2025 and possibly even 2027.

From Manchester City’s perspective, that means an unintended skepticism about all their previous successes. For players like Liverpool, that means they must continue to find ways to take on Guardiola’s juggernaut, whether reasonably put together or not – knowing that the prospect of subsequent title wins if an attack is spotted is far.

Even for the Premier League itself, it doesn’t look good. At the same time, they attack Manchester City and proclaim them one of the greatest teams of all time, handing out the latest title with the usual pomp and ceremony. All in all, it’s a huge mess and has left the biggest league in the world virtually in limbo.

That’s not to say the Premier League position isn’t deserving of sympathy. He knows the stakes are high for everyone involved: Manchester City, Everton and all of those teams’ rivals. The CAS case noted that the seriousness of the allegations required “particularly conclusive” evidence, which could hurt various sponsors and individuals as well as clubs. This must be done carefully.

But you can’t blame Premier League clubs for their ‘anger’. The longer cases like Manchester City remain unresolved, the more the division loses its competitive legitimacy, and that is in no one’s interest.

Liverpool transfer news, rumours, gossip and speculation including the latest on Jean-Philippe Mateta, Conor Coady, Rodrigo, Tammy Abraham, Amadou Onana, Jarrad Branthwaite, Andre Gomes, Tom Krauss and Viktor Gyokeres

Everton news and transfers blog on Wednesday, June 1.

Now that Everton’s Premier League status has been secured, all focus has turned to Sean Dyche making additions to his squad to avoid another close call with relegation next season.

Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano has offered fresh hope that Amadou Onana will remain an Everton player next season. A turbulent campaign made many Toffees supporters for losing their midfield talisman after just one season.

Elsewhere, the Blues are linked with a surprise move for Sunderland star Jack Clarke. Failure to secure Premier League promotion has put many top-flight clubs on red alert for the 22-year-old.

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Dele Alli backed to turn career fortunes around
Former Tottenham Hotspur manager Tim Sherwood has backed Dele Alli to make an extraordinary U-turn and get his career back on track after struggling to make an impact at Everton and Besiktas.

Speaking on the Up Front podcast, Sherwood said: “I think Dele could still turn it around, I don’t think he’s done. He’s still young enough, but he needs someone to talk to and someone needs to talk some sense into him. He hasn’t turned into a bad player overnight, but he’s certainly lost his way.

“Now he needs to realise that he needs to adapt and find a way. He needs to look at himself and say ‘I can still turn this around’, don’t blame anyone else and look at himself and realise that he’s still young enough.

“I’d love to see him turn it around because he’d get a lot of credit for that. As much as he feels like everyone is against him now, I think everyone would admire his determination to turn it round.

“Dele hit the floor running after he was brought in from MK Dons. He had a manager who wanted to work with him and improve him and he bought into the playing style.”

He added: “He’s not a number 10 in the way that Dennis Bergkamp or Gianfranco Zola were, he’s more of a Frank Lampard who bursts and arrives in the box and scores goals, and the team played to those strengths.

“I don’t think it’s a case of him needing to find the right club to fit him. I think he really needs to decide in his own mind that he needs to shape himself to be the right person to fit a football club and not just wait for it to happen, because it won’t. I think he’s either not listening or he’s not getting the advice.”

Crystal Palace striker eyed
Jean-Philippe Mateta named as a player Everton could target

Everton want to sign Crystal Palace striker Jean-Philippe Mateta. Palace are happy to let the player go.

Blues eye Uruguayan midfielder Emiliano Martinez
Everton and Marseille will battle it out for FC Midtjylland’s Emiliano Martinez, according to reports in Uruguay.

The 23-year-old defensive midfielder has impressed in Denmark this season, where he made his switch permanent after an initial loan deal was signed in the summer of 2022.

According to Uruguayan journalist Rodri Vazquez, Marseille and Everton are interested, with the report later claiming the Blues have made a “firm offer” for the player.

READ NEXT….

Liverpool star Steven Gerrard loves can be wildcard Trent Alexander-Arnold foil to save millions

With Liverpool having ended the season on an 11-game unbeaten run, there is no doubt that Trent Alexander-Arnold’s reinvention was central to his team’s revival. Jürgen Klopp may have concerns about what the Reds would do in his absence but the solution may already be clear.

The homegrown star looked like a man who was relishing his football during the final two months of last season, with his move into the ‘inverted full-back’ role having allowed him to rediscover his creative touch. Prior to the second half of the 2-2 draw against Arsenal in early April, the 24-year-old had probably experienced the toughest spell of his career to date, before his transformation in a hybrid position saw him notch eight goal involvements in as many games — one strike and seven assists.

With an average of one goal involvement per game during the period in question, one imagines that his manager Klopp will be keen to persist with this tactical tweak, with his transfer activity possibly reflecting this. For all the positives, however, the Liverpool boss and his staff may need to find a way to ensure that they can cope in his absence next term.

READ MORE: Sadio Mané may seal surprise transfer amid Liverpool claim as Real Madrid has Kylian Mbappé plan

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The obvious way this could be managed is for the Reds to revert back to playing with a more traditional right-back if Alexander-Arnold is not in the side for whatever reason, meaning creative responsibilities would fall upon the shoulders of the collective group, rather than one orchestrator. The second strategy may involve either buying another ‘inverted full-back’ or, indeed, converting an existing player within the squad to play the role as an understudy to the West Derby-born star.

Of the options available on the market currently, Ajax’s Jurrien Timber may well be the most suitable but one cannot overlook the attributes of Liverpool academy graduate Stefan Bajčetić either, who could well represent an unorthodox solution to this conundrum. During his 19 games in all competitions last term, it was obvious that the Spanish teenager possessed a passing range that defied his tender years and an aggression when out of possession which made him a real asset before his unfortunate injury back in March.

Of course, the 18-year-old has so far only featured as a midfielder for the first team but it is worth noting that he came through the club’s academy system while playing as a center-back. In that sense, it is clear that the youngster is tactically flexible and possesses an ability to adapt to new roles in the team in order to maximize his talents.

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To further strengthen the case for Bajčetić potentially serving as Alexander-Arnold’s understudy next season, one need only look at what Liverpool icon Steven Gerrard had to say about the prospect’s game earlier this year. What is striking is that his description of the former Celta Vigo trainee’s skillset could very easily be mistaken as a summation of Alexander-Arnold’s attributes instead.

Speaking ahead of Liverpool’s clash with Real Madrid at Anfield back in February, he waxed lyrical about the youngster’s performances during what was an otherwise difficult period for the side. The midfield legend said: “He’s doing very well on both sides of the game, he’s shown aggression, and he’s covering the ground very well.

“He’s always looking to pass forward, he’s always looking to be positive. He can play the last pass and his maturity is beyond his years, so far. Fair play to him, he’s taking his chance.”

With Klopp’s squad requiring major surgery in multiple areas this summer, it is clear that the club’s recruitment staff will need to be selective when it comes to strengthening, with additions in midfield and at center-back expected to be the priority. In effect, therefore, Bajčetić’s emergence last season could well end up saving the club millions in the coming months.

Competition for minutes in midfield may well be fierce next season but the Spanish youth international may well be able to carve out a role for himself as an understudy to Alexander-Arnold instead. With the Europa League offering Klopp a chance to experiment next season, the upcoming campaign could well prove to be a seminal period for the likes of Bajčeti

Alexis Mac Allister, Manu Kone and Khephren Thuram have all been heavily linked with Liverpool, so we simulated next season with the midfield trio in Jurgen Klopp’s squad

It’s no secret that Liverpool will look to sign several midfielders this summer; among their reportedly top targets are Alexis MacAllister, Manu Kone, and Khephren Thuram.

The most imminent transfer is for Mac Allister, who plays for Brighton & Hove Albion. Liverpool wants to finalize the deal before Allister reports to the Argentina team for international duty.

More than one midfielder is anticipated to arrive at Anfield as a result of the departures of the midfield trio of James Milner, Naby Keita, and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain from the Reds, with Kone and Thuram both receiving significant transfer rumors.

Liverpool won the Premier League in the 2023/24 season

The 22-year-old midfielder Kone of Borussia Monchengladbach has been connected with Liverpool in recent weeks, according to the Reds, according to the midfielder’s former coach Reda Bekhti.

Additionally, Thuram of Nice is a target for Klopp’s team, who have reportedly been in contact with the Frenchman for weeks, according to L’Equipe.

Could Mac Allister, Thuram, and Kone help the Reds return to their best next season if they were to sign them in the summer? To discover out, we created a simulation of Jurgen Klopp’s team for the 2023–2024 season.

Alexis Mac Allister, Khephren Thuram, and Manu Kone were’signed’ by us to Liverpool.
We utilized Football Manager 2023 to build up this simulation, arranging for Mac Allister, Thuram, and Kone to all sign with Liverpool, joining the team on July 1, 2023. The 2023–24 season was then simulated to determine the potential impact.

Under Klopp, all three players became into favorites, swiftly securing starting roles and forming one of the Premier League’s top midfields. Mac Allister, Kone, and Thuram were the club’s top midfield performers at the end of the 2023–24 season, demonstrating how much progress they had made for Klopp’s team.

Out of the midfielders, Thuram averaged the highest rating per game (7.13), followed closely by Mac Allister (7.09) and Kone (7.11).

In terms of midfielders, the Frenchman also had the most goals (9) while Kone had the most assists (10) and made the most appearances (50).

Due to a number of injuries, Mac Allister was only able to make a limited number of appearances, but when he did, he excelled. And when compared to the Reds’ current midfield alternatives, only Harvey Elliott and Jordan Henderson came close to matching their performance.

Based on performances, statistics, and other factors, Football Manager 23 generated an all-time best Liverpool XI at the conclusion of the 2023–24 season. This is how it appeared:

Alisson, Alexander-Arnold, Van Dijk, Konate, Robertson; Kone, Mac Allister, Thuram; Salah, Nunez, and Diaz make up the whole Liverpool best XI (4-3-3) in the picture.

The Liverpool best XI for the 2023–24 season featured Kone, Mac Allister, and Thuram, with Fabinho, Henderson, Elliott, Thiago, and Sefan Bajcetic serving as the trio’s backups.

Darwin Nunez, who scored the same number of goals as the Uruguayan, began in the front three with Luis Diaz and Mohamed Salah, leaving Cody Gakpo and Diogo Jota out of the best XI.

Results for Liverpool with Mac Allister, Thuram, and Kone on the team

With the signing of the midfield trio, Liverpool significantly improved over the previous season, and the Reds were able to regain their prior level of dominance in the Premier League.

Between November and February, Klopp’s team went on a 14-game winning streak, which propelled them to the top of the standings where they remained as they won the Premier League championship.

We ‘signed’ Alexis Mac Allister, Khephren Thuram and Manu Kone for Liverpool and trophies were won
Liverpool won the Premier League in the 2023/24 season

The Reds finished the 2023–24 season with 94 points, 11 more than Manchester City in second place as they easily won the league with 29 victories, seven draws, and just two losses.

They lost to Chelsea and Wolves on the road, respectively, thus they once again finished the Premier League season unbeaten at home.

Liverpool also had the best offensive and defensive records in the league at the end of the season with 74 goals scored and 24 goals allowed. The Reds went on to win the treble after another two trophies with the help of Klopp’s new midfield trio.

The Reds defeated Manchester United 1-0 in the Europa League final thanks to a goal from Darwin Nunez, and then added another trophy to their season’s haul with a 2-0 victory over Man City in the FA Cup final.

We ‘signed’ Alexis Mac Allister, Khephren Thuram and Manu Kone for Liverpool and trophies were won
Liverpool won two cups in the 2023/24 season

But the Carabao Cup was not to be, with the Reds falling to Peterborough in the third round of the competition after a shocking penalty shootout loss.

Football Manager 2023 believes that if Liverpool were to recruit Mac Allister, Thuram, and Kone, the trio might reenergize Klopp’s squad and significantly contribute to the Reds winning a treble.

All three of them excelled in their respective roles, and Liverpool was rewarded for finally reviving the midfield by winning all three of their matches.

Fresh VAR figures expose real truth about Liverpool and referees

Liverpool have been named as one of the top three clubs in the Premier League to benefit from VAR decisions throughout the course of the 2022/23 campaign.

Since 2019, the English top-flight’s referees have been able to utilise video technology for the purpose of reaching correct decisions. Whilst that is the case in the most part, PGMOL and its officials are under more scrutiny than ever to carry out their roles as quickly and effectively as possible in order to come to the correct conclusions.

Now the season has ended, the total number of decisions for and against each club have been compiled by ESPN in order to produce an VAR net score table. Liverpool have found themselves joint-second on the list, equal with Fulham with a net score of five, and trailing only Brentford.

Liverpool’s score came as a result of 13 overturned calls split across their 38 fixtures – eight in their favour and five against.

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In addition, the Reds’ top four rivals Manchester United and Newcastle ended the season with net scores of zero and one respectively, whilst champions Manchester City achieved a net score of minus four.

On the surface of these results, many would be quick to point the finger and jeer ‘LiVARpool’ in the direction of Anfield, however in reality these results only serve to back what Jurgen Klopp has been arguing for a number of months now – Liverpool are not the beneficiaries of VAR’s correct decisions, but are in fact hindered more often than most by wrong ones made by Premier League referees.

The Liverpool manager’s most notable outburst followed Paul Tierney’s general decision-making made during Liverpool’s last-gasp victory over Tottenham in April, and was one that earned him a two-game touchline ban.

“We have our history with Tierney, I really don’t know what he has against us. He has said there [are] no problems but that cannot be true.

“How he looks at me, I don’t understand it. In England nobody has to clarify these situations, it’s really tricky and hard to understand.

“What he said to me when he gave me the yellow card is not OK.”

Again, earlier in 2023, the German had some strong words to say following what he believed to be a foul on Ibrahima Konate by Bryan Mbeumo in the build-up to the Bees’ third goal en route to a statement victory in the capital.

Asked if he had spoken to the officials, he said: “Yeah, but actually that’s exactly the same as I would talk to my microwave, you get no response, really. It’s always the same.

“Before the season they gave us advice that the players have to be careful in these moments because the refs will have an eye on it. You see in these games pretty much everything is allowed, it’s always on the edge and they are using it.”

Whether this war of words continues before we witness genuine change, only time will tell.

READ NEXT…

Liverpool kick-start talks with 22-year-old Chelsea, Manchester United target

Liverpool are in talks with Borussia Monchengladbach star Manu Kone, a target for Chelsea and Manchester United, ahead of the summer transfer window

According to 90min, Premier League giants Liverpool are currently in talks with Borussia Monchengladbach star Manu Kone ahead of the summer transfer window. The youngster is also a target for Chelsea and Manchester United.

The 22-year-old has enjoyed a splendid season in the Bundesliga and appears ready to make the next step in his development. A move to the Premier League might not be easy but could become a reality given the number of English sides keen on his services.

Liverpool will be keen to rebuild in the summer and have little choice but to revamp their midfield roster. The squad lacked energy and drive in the middle of the park last season, costing them dearly in the UEFA Champions League and also in the race for a top-four finish in the Premier League.

Physically well-built and with energy to spare, the 22-year-old would make for an excellent addition to Jurgen Klopp’s midfield. His ability to drive forward with the ball adds another dimension to the Reds and is something they can benefit from in the long term.

Embed from Getty Images

The Reds have already held talks with Kone’s camp and appear to be making their move to get the deal over the line. With Jorg Schmadtke having taken the reins of the club’s sporting director, Liverpool are well-placed to launch their summer upheaval.

They will face competition from both Manchester United and Chelsea, both of whom are also keeping tabs on the player. Erik ten Hag could lose Scott McTominay in the summer and could do with an infusion of youth in the middle of the park. Meanwhile, With Fred linked with a move to Fulham, there is every reason to believe Kone would be subject to some interest from Manchester United.

The same can be said of Chelsea, who will now embark on a new journey under Mauricio Pochettino. Having lost Jorginho, they might also part ways with Mason Mount and possibly N’Golo Kante, the latter on a free transfer.

With Mateo Kovacic reportedly in talks with Manchester City, the Blues could be in the same boat as Liverpool as far as a midfield rebuild is considered. Liverpool will do well to act fast and land the 22-year-old Frenchman before he becomes a household name. The quicker they act, the sooner they can land themselves a real star in the making.