Liverpool transfer news and rumours: January transfer window 2021
All the latest Liverpool transfer news, rumours and gossip in the 2021 winter window.
Klopp on transfers: ‘I cannot spend the money’
Jurgen Klopp says he discusses Liverpool transfer targets on a daily basis but he „cannot spend the money“ as he hints at frustration over the club not strengthening his squad.
„Of course someone else is making the decisions, it was always like this,“ Klopp said, when asked to clarify comments he made after the defeat to Burnley, where he implied he did not have the final say on bringing in reinforcements.
„If people are surprised about that, I cannot change that. The situation we have is we discuss on a daily basis.
„Could we improve something or not? I then make recommendations, but I cannot spend the money. I don’t make these decisions, I never did.“
‘Klopp not frustrated, just realistic’
Sky Sports News’ Kaveh Solhekol on The Transfer Show (January 22):
„I wouldn’t say Jurgen Klopp is frustrated. I think he knows the way football works, he knows what is happening in the wider world with the pandemic and the effect that is having on club finances.
„Of course, he would like to sign a centre-back because he has been without Van Dijk and Gomez, and what was interesting today was he said they talk about transfers daily but he is not the one who sets the budget or the club’s financial strategy. I didn’t get a sense that he was frustrated or trying to get the people above him to start spending money. I think he was just being realistic.
„In the summer, we were being told that they didn’t have much money and they would be very careful, then they went out and signed Jota and Thiago came in as well.
„But obviously, things aren’t going well at Liverpool at the moment. They lost last night to Burnley, the end of that long, unbeaten home record, but the problems aren’t just in defence when you look at Liverpool. The biggest problem is they’re not scoring enough goals but I don’t think that’s going to be addressed in the next 10 days.
„They are being offered centre-backs. I was speaking to a few agents, who were telling me that they have players on their books and obviously they are aware Liverpool need a centre-back.
„They’ve been contacting people at Liverpool to see if they would be interested in their clients, and in those two cases, Liverpool weren’t interested.
„But that backs up what Jurgen Klopp is saying, that transfers are being discussed every day at Liverpool, but is the quality pout there for the club the size of Liverpool.
„Are they really going to make a panic buy in the January transfer window during a pandemic?“
Is Klopp playing the waiting game over new defender?
Sky Sports News’ Dharmesh Sheth on The Transfer Show (January 22):
„It’s interesting, the reaction from fans and from pundits as well about Liverpool needing to bring in a central defender.
„When they didn’t sign Virgil van Dijk initially, they could’ve signed another central defender, but they waited.
„I’m just wondering whether Jurgen Klopp has got a long-term target in mind and he may not be available in this transfer window.
Does he then do a short-term fix or does he wait for his long-term target, which in normal circumstances would happen in the summer?
„I know Van Dijk did arrive in January but that appeared to be a one-off. If one of his long-term targets became available during this month, I think he would have gone into the market.
„Maybe that just hasn’t happened yet.“
Wijnaldum latest: ‘He wants to be paid what he’s worth’
Wijnaldum will snub Liverpool’s last-ditch efforts to keep him at the club – to fulfil a boyhood dream with Barcelona (Sunday Mirror, January 17); Barcelona boss Ronald Koeman is confident of signing Liverpool midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum (Mundo Deportivo, January 15)
Sky Sports News reporter Kaveh Solhekol told the Transfer Show (January 7):
„Klopp has to be very diplomatic. He is not going to start telling us exactly what is happening with the negotiations.
„What we do know is Wijnaldum wants to stay and Klopp also wants him to stay, but he is at the stage of his career where his contract runs out this summer and he knows big clubs in Italy and Barcelona are after him.
„And Liverpool also have to be careful in this economic climate when handing out contracts to players. What we are being told is a contract has been put in front of Wijnaldum, he has not signed it yet, he does not have to sign it, he is keeping his options open.
„But reading between the lines, Klopp wants him to stay. But as far as Wijnaldum is concerned, he needs to be paid what he believes he is worth.“
On January 7, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp said of Wijnaldum’s contract stalemate: „There’s really nothing to say. I think I’ve said everything about how much I like the person and the player. That’s not good or bad news, that’s just how it is. If there is a decision, you will know it.“
Salah: I want to stay at Liverpool for as long as I can
Mohamed Salah has pledged his long-term commitment to Liverpool by saying he wants to stay at Anfield for as long as he can.
Asked about his future by Norwegian channel TV2, Salah said: „I do not know. If you ask, I say I want to stay here as long as I can, but, as I have said before, it is in the hands of the club.
„I will always give 100 per cent to the last minute I am in this club and I want to win as many trophies as I can. And I want to give 100 per cent to the people, who show me love all the time.“
Klopp: Centre-back signings ‘not likely’
Klopp has also said a new centre-back is ‘not likely’ due to the coronavirus pandemic, but did not entirely rule out the possibility.
He told his pre-Aston Villa press conference: „I cannot say definitely we will not bring one in, it’s just not likely because of the situation in the world. We should not forget that the situation is a tough one for all people and for football clubs as well.
„There might be some clubs with absolutely no financial problems but this club is always very responsible with the things we do.
„If the world would have been in a normal place and the club was in the best possible situation, with three senior centre-halves plus Fabinho and Keita all injured, is that a situation where usually we would do something? Yes, definitely.
„But, we are not in that situation so I don’t know if something will happen or not. Maybe you could do something, but it’s wouldn’t be a short-term solution. That’s not right because it doesn’t help really.
„We have to deal with the situation, as we have done so far, and get through this. It’s not the best moment for the whole planet, so why should it be for a football club.“Liverpool’s priorities this window
Jamie Carragher has reiterated his belief Liverpool will be unable to regain the Premier League title unless they sign a centre-back this month.
Speaking after Liverpool’s 1-0 defeat at Southampton, in which Fabinho and Jordan Henderson played in defence, Carragher told Sky Sports: „The results Liverpool have had recently have nothing to do with them defensively. It’s going forward that is the problem.
„But l just think that it’s imperative Liverpool sign someone in January. Henderson isn’t a centre-back.
„I can’t see Liverpool winning the league if they don’t bring in a centre-back. They have enough quality to go for the title if they don’t bring someone in. But unless they do, it’s a really tough ask.“
‘Maksimovic interesting Liverpool’
Sky Sports News reporter Kaveh Solhekol told The Transfer Show (January 12):
„Liverpool had looked at signing Napoli’s Serbia centre-back Nikola Maksimovic, but according to the club’s president Aurelio De Laurentiis, they were interested, but he had not heard anything back from them recently.“
The latest players linked with a move to Liverpool
Dayot Upamecano – Thomas Tuchel’s appointment at Chelsea could cost Manchester United and Liverpool in their bid to sign RB Leipzig defender Dayot Upamecano (Daily Express, January 27).
United will go head-to-head with Liverpool for RB Leipzig’s brilliant young defender (Mirror, January 23); RB Leipzig CEO Oliver Mintzlaff has opened the door to a possible transfer for the centre-back after insisting the Bundesliga club will always consider selling their assets for the right price (SportBild, January 10).
David Alaba – Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp continues to covet Alaba and has urged Anfield chiefs to keep pace in the race for the Bayern Munich star. (Mirror, January 26); Real Madrid have offered Alaba a lucrative contract to join the club – but the Bayern Munich defender is yet to make a decision on his future (Sky Germany, January 19); The defender has snubbed a move to the Premier League after reportedly agreeing a move to Real Madrid (Mirror, January 19); Liverpool have reportedly offered Alaba a £9m-a-year contract to beat Real Madrid to his transfer (Daily Express, January 7); Liverpool have made a last-ditch bid to hijack Real Madrid’s move for Alaba on a free transfer, according to reports (The Sun, January 6).
Kaide Gordon – Liverpool are winning the race for the Derby County forward in a deal worth more than £1m for the teenager (Daily Telegraph, January 25 and Mirror, January 26)
Jamal Musiala – Liverpool and Manchester United have suffered a transfer blow after Bayern Munich reportedly made progress in tying Jamal Musiala down to a new contract (Daily Mail, January 23); Liverpool and United are paying close attention to contract negotiations concerning the Bayern youngster after talks seemed to reach deadlock (Goal, January 22).
Adama Traore – Liverpool will need to fend off interest from Man City and Leeds United in order to land the Wolves star (Mirror, January 18); Liverpool have not ruled out the possibility of signing the Wolves winger in the near future, according to reports (Daily Express, January 16)
Ben White – Liverpool are planning a summer move for Brighton defender White (Liverpool Echo, January 15)
Rodrigo De Paul – Liverpool are preparing for the exit of Wijnaldum and have eyed Udinese midfield star De Paul to fill in his shoes (Daily Express, January 14)
Kalidou Koulibaly – Napoli owner Aurelio De Laurentiis has warned Manchester United and Liverpool they must offer at least £100m if they want to sign Koulibaly this month (The Sun, January 13)
Sokratis Papastathopoulos – Liverpool have been offered the chance to sign Arsenal outcast Sokratis Papastathopoulos amid their defensive injury crisis (Daily Star, January 15)
Sergio Ramos – Liverpool are eyeing a move for Ramos on a free transfer at the end of the season (Daily Star, January 8).
Patson Daka – The Manchester United and Liverpool target wants to emulate fellow African stars Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane by becoming a hit in the Premier League (Daily Mail, January 7).
Gleison Bremer – The 23-year-old Brazilian defender currently playing at Torino is also attracting interest from the Reds, according to reports in Italy (Tuttosport, January 3).
Sven Botman – Botman is not a Liverpool target in January – despite links reporting the 20-year-old Schalke defender is wanted to add to the Reds’ injury-hit defence (January 4); Liverpool are reportedly in talks with Lille over a potential January move for central defender (Transfer Window Podcast via Daily Star, January 4).
Maximilian Wober – Jurgen Klopp’s search for a centre-back to help fill the void left by long-term injuries to Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez has seen him add the Red Bull Salzburg man to his apparent wishlist (Eurosport, January 1).
Which defenders could Liverpool buy in January?
January transfer window: Every club assessed
Kylian Mbappe – Liverpool are monitoring the PSG’s star’s contract situation. The French paper says Klopp’s side have been keen on the forward, whose deal runs out in 2022, „for many years“ (L’Equipe, January 2).
The latest players linked with a Liverpool exit
Sepp van den Berg – Liverpool are set to allow Van den Berg to leave the club on loan this month, despite a defensive injury crisis threatening to derail their title challenge (Daily Star, January 11).
Xherdan Shaqiri – The forward is likely to stay at Anfield until the end of the season as the club feels their hands are tied due to the coronavirus pandemic (Daily Star, January 6).
Georginio Wijnaldum – Talks over a new contract between the midfielder and Liverpool have reached a stalemate. A long-standing offer of a new deal remains on the table. But for now, the 30-year old Netherlands midfielder has not accepted it. Ronald Koeman remains keen to sign his compatriot, but as yet, that interest has not progressed into an official offer from Barca to either the player or Liverpool (Sky Sports News, January 6).
Barcelona’s top three transfer targets are Liverpool’s Georginio Wijnaldum, Manchester City centre-back Eric Garcia and Lyon forward Memphis Depay (Sky Sports News, January 4); Wijnaldum will be a free agent at Liverpool this summer which has reportedly left Anfield officials „stunned“ (Daily Express, January 5).
Mohamed Salah – Fabinho believes Liverpool team-mate Salah is happy at Anfield despite recent speculation linking him with a move away from Anfield (Daily Star, January 14); The Liverpool forward fuelled speculation about his long-term future when he admitted admiration for Barcelona and Real Madrid in a recent interview in Spain, calling them „two top clubs“ (AS, December 19).
Confirmed Liverpool departures
Deals will be confirmed here.
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The latest Liverpool contract news
Georginio Wijnaldum – The midfielder will snub Liverpool’s last-ditch efforts to keep him at the club – to fulfil a boyhood dream with Barcelona (Sunday Mirror, January 17); The Liverpool midfielder is now free to speak to foreign clubs and sign a pre-contract agreement. Ronald Koeman is hopeful of bringing his fellow Dutchman to Barcelona but Jurgen Klopp is pushing to Wijnaldum to stay (Sky Sports News, December 28).
Mohamed Salah – Liverpool are said to have other priorities before agreeing a new contract for their star Egypt forward (Daily Star, January 9).
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