Liverpool Rumours Archive September 18 2020

18 Sep 2020 23:27:46
Jota will go through tomorrow morning. I reckon I’ve worked it out on my own insider knowledge:

I got my mum and dad the anfield stadium tour for my dads birthday and I’d booked it for 11am tomorrow morning. Then someone from the anfield office rang me today asking to rearrange because the stadium was going to be closed for some ‘operational thing’ - he didn’t give any specifics.

They must be closing it to the public so they can do the pictures for jota inside the changing rooms/ tunnel/ pitch etc!

18 Sep 2020 23:37:14
Can he play against Chelsea he was signed tonight.

18 Sep 2020 23:43:26
Old school rumour right there.

19 Sep 2020 01:50:21
Jota can't be included vs Chelsea as the deadline to have players registered to feature this weekend was 12 noon on Friday. Thiago was signed in time but any player coming in since 12pm can't be involved.

19 Sep 2020 02:48:34
This has been a great transfer window, wow - the players that might not make the bench!

19 Sep 2020 03:20:47
Sorry to hear Diogo's tour has delayed your Dad's birthday tour. Many happy returns! I'm sure he'll make it up to him with some delightful goals and assists.
Maybe even starting against Lincoln! Hooray! :)

19 Sep 2020 03:24:10
Love it.

19 Sep 2020 07:49:18
Don’t think Thiago was done in time. Klopp said he couldn’t be part of the squad in his interview. Although I guess Klopp could be mistaken. Either way, I doubt he will be included until he gets some training with the team. Hope I’m wrong though.

19 Sep 2020 10:06:25
Sorry to put a negative on things. Jota is a very inconsistent player. On his day he’s right up there, but he doesn’t have many of them. He’ll be warming the bench for most of the time Nuno’s just got the deal of a lifetime.

19 Sep 2020 11:29:41
That's okay, PNA. There's always one. But if we actually deal in facts then Jota's statistics are actually very similar to Mane's when at Southampton. Klopp and his coaches didn't do too bad a job of turning him into a top player now did they?

19 Sep 2020 11:25:54
@PNA. Isn't that what Klopp and the coaching staff are employed to sort out?

You could have said the same thing about Wijnaldum when he was at Newcastle, but he's been very consistent. Also Mane was only flashes of brilliance here and there when he was at Southampton. Having better players around you brings out the best in you.

20 Sep 2020 03:34:06
Jota is only 23 yet has played a lot of football for last 4 or 5 years where it is uncommon to see players have consistency at that young age. Were the likes of salah, mane, de bruyne, son or the other best league attackers playing at a consistent level in the top leagues between the age of 20 and 23? Consistency is a trait that is demanded with more experience and young players should get less scrutiny at that age. It becomes an issue if there's no improvement over next couple of seasons. I know jota can look electric in 1 game and then be quiet for another 2 or 3 which is not good enough for our level but his output each season shows he can rack up good numbers for such a young age. His role at wolves wasn't always the best system for him to flourish and I think it's clear that his strenghts are far more likely to fit into how we set up. The energy and support that Robertson and our midfield will bring when combining from the left side and Firmino or whoever else creating spaces for him while salah or mane looking to give him options he could become far more effective and consistent. Jimenez was nearly always the only quality he had to work with in attack and with midfielders who never run beyond the ball in support. Mane was very similar in terms of going hot and cold until he settled at us where we lined up with different players and tactical approach that lifted his game.

18 Sep 2020 20:40:14
Delighted with Thiago and the apparently imminent arrival of Jota, but where's the money coming from?

Are confident enough of offloading Grujic, Wilson, Karius, maybe Origi or Wijnaldum that we're pressing ahead knowing we'll ultimately break even (ish) . Or are we borrowing?

Or is this a bad question that'll give an Ed a headache?

18 Sep 2020 23:11:22
Why are you trying to kill the buzz mate? We’ve won everything in last couple of years playing great football. Why does money concern you? there are better people at the club than us to take care of that. Enjoy the ride or you will miss it.

18 Sep 2020 23:11:24
Trust Edwards and fsg. They know what they’re doing.

19 Sep 2020 01:24:32
It is called Creative Accountancy from Fenway.

19 Sep 2020 01:24:49
This has me worries that some "shock" deal will come out of this, and Mane's leaving.

19 Sep 2020 02:45:00
How can you be concerned with money?
Win the Champions league - spend nothing
Win the league - spend less than the competitors.
Liverpool have access to the cash to buy whoever they want without coming anywhere close to distress.
Also, who cares if they borrow? Every business borrows money to better itself. (LFC has always been a business btw)

{Ed0666's Note - I’m not sure we have the money to buy whoever without stress at all Mr Risdale.

19 Sep 2020 02:57:01
People need to be clearer on terms of how transfers are agreed before questioning financial sense. Thiago will only cost us 5mil this year and 5mil each of following 3 summer. Jota is not signing on the condition we pay a big lump now. he's going to be on a 5 year contract and because Liverpool are strong now clubs will be easier to agree to future bonuses or add ons. We see our players winning individual awards, top of goal scoring lists, club titles looking more common so those add on payments are easier to negotiate. Apparently we only more than 20 mil for thiago if he wins either league, CL or ballon d'or in his contract length so jota likely to have clauses as no chance we pay any big money this year. We will sell players which is obvious but it was silly to think we had to wait to get a certain amount which was then allowing us to spend instantly. For example it was possible that coutinho winning the European cup at any stage during his Barcelona contract length meant we would receive a lump of payment that was not guaranteed in the figure that was publically named as total cost. The likes of Danny ings having such a strong season and reaching accolades etc may be reasons behind us getting earlier than expected income. Jota will likely be balanced in our books with the likes of Wilson, shaqiri, origi or Brewster now seemingly on the market. With 2 or even 3 not being needed they will easily pay the jota cost and more. Hoever brings in 10mil as does lovren so 20 mil at least income for rarely needed defenders.

It's not so simple as thinking we can't deal with transfers until the minute we officially anounce a sale and just get that price immediately in the bank to spend. We've obviously been planning on thiago and jota for a period of time with realistic prediction of what players will leave and earn us so financial impact will never be a wishful gamble. We moan and get frustration but we never have any clue to what is happening within so always presume that activity in the public eye represents the activity in real life. Why would we actually operate under that strategy openly? Every other club would get negotiation strenght if that was so obvious. Bayern would be able to be stubborn if knowing that thiago was wanted only after gini for example left and we were in need for his replacement. If we tried to immediately offer decent money for a CB after lovren left clubs could have held out for more. It's smart business that we have prioritised the areas we weren't yet desperate to fill. I expect we now focus on shipping out the weaker players who thiago and jota will take upgrade while adding another defender at some point when the price best suits us instead oflooking forced to replace our defensive outgoings.

{Ed0666's Note - you took my advice well done sir and Thankyou.

19 Sep 2020 05:57:40
OmG har has used paragraphs, well done sir 😄.

19 Sep 2020 07:53:57
That grammarly software is good, isn't it? 😂.

19 Sep 2020 07:54:47
Christos, obviously haven’t frequented the page much recently. Ed002 has repeatedly explained that we had pre spent much of our tournament winnings. I am a little concerned with where this money is coming from but I am also not Liverpool’s accountant, wish I was. Any recruiters lurking I’m fully qualified, come get me ;) . Either way, I trust the club to be doing the right thing and I imagine we are confident in sales of out of favour players rather than Mane.

20 Sep 2020 00:23:11
Cotsi, it isn't possible to pre-spend money. Businesses invest according to their anticipated cashflow. ED002 is wrong.
The windfalls from winning the CL and EPL might lower the debt % but the winnings certainly weren't "prespent" as that isn't how any of this works.

18 Sep 2020 17:26:52
Jota to be announced tomorrow.

18 Sep 2020 17:38:54
Some sources are saying they want it finalised tonight.

18 Sep 2020 18:03:21
Where is the money coming from? If we couldn’t afford Werner why can we suddenly spend $25m on Thiago, $35m on Jota and apparently $45m on Sarr? What’s changed?

18 Sep 2020 18:21:20
Let's hope Jota puts pen to paper.

18 Sep 2020 18:21:30
I would say Sarr would only happen if a Salah or Mané were to go. Pointless having 3 players going to AFCON. Jota makes more sense if Brewster and Origi are to leave.

18 Sep 2020 18:24:31
Maybe we are about to sell someone/ some players. Hopefully not from the first XI.

18 Sep 2020 18:24:36
The overall package and consequences of signing Werner alone would have cost more than both these transfers.

You pay 50 mil transfer, 220+k per week. For a potentially non starter. Then the likes of Mane, Bobby, Salah, Virg, Allison etc all quite rightfully march in and ask why they don't get paid that and would like to negotiate. The harmony in the team is lost and the financial budget is up the swanny.

18 Sep 2020 18:26:10
the finishing of firmino playing leeds. (and probable outgoings)

18 Sep 2020 18:26:40
Its 5 mill for thiago for 4 yrs. So that's nothing. The other 5 is add ons.

18 Sep 2020 18:27:13
I think it’s because we couldn’t pay a significant amount up front for Werner, whereas Chelsea were in a position to do it because of a combination of having received large transfer fees and not having been able to previously spend it. These deals are probably based on a spreading out of the fees I’d imagine.

18 Sep 2020 18:27:23
We don't spend on both Jota and Sarr. You also have to keep in mind that the figure you mention is only the one known to the puplic eye. Werner weren't only €45 mill. I think sales have been sorted behind the scenes. Tsimikas, Thiago and Jota will make a brilliant window. My only concern is that the cb haven't been addressed as one of the priorities - And I don't think repositioning Fabinho, one of the best DMs around. Just saw a rumour about Kabak again, but I assume we are more than done after Jota, if not before.

18 Sep 2020 18:31:27
We didn't want werner.

18 Sep 2020 18:32:55
Mane is going to barcelona.

18 Sep 2020 18:33:15
I don't understand how he fits into the team? Anyone enlighten me?

18 Sep 2020 18:35:55
Nulty - I imagine wages are playing a big factor.

18 Sep 2020 18:36:30
Sarr ain't coming. Werner refused to wait. Klopp: "It's about timing. " So c'est la vie. Don't worry about the money, that's being taken care of.

18 Sep 2020 18:37:36
Not sure his what we need tbh. no doubt he can finish but where n when is he going to play ?

18 Sep 2020 18:37:46
I think something did. Klopp who wanted to leave football suddenly is open to extending his stay with us. something must have been done by fsg. how dare they. fsg out.

18 Sep 2020 18:43:44
Barcelona is struggling to pay £30m for Depay so I very much doubt they could afford Mane this year.

18 Sep 2020 18:50:33
Successful Dribbles per 90
Jota - 2.6
Keita - 2.5
Mane - 2.3
Firmino - 1.6
Salah - 1.6

35m would be at least 50m pre-C.V.. This ain't no "backup".

18 Sep 2020 18:55:03
I'm guessing its an either or for jota or sarr I can't see us getting both.

Jota is versatile and can play across the front three i think. If we sell them hoever and get jota the other way. We have effectively bought him for 25m. Personally I'd prefer jota to sarr and at a similar price I think its a good deal.

Outgoings must be lined up though possibly origi may have a suitor or shaq. Think its going to be busy over the next week.

18 Sep 2020 20:11:35
Jota is a quality player. well pleased if this happens. Give firminio much needed competition.

18 Sep 2020 20:18:18
I have a suspicion Firmino could be off.
Miniamo, Thiago and Dota can all play across front three.

18 Sep 2020 21:15:19
@Rax - Firmino will not be leaving.

18 Sep 2020 22:14:38
And thiago can't play up front.

18 Sep 2020 20:37:39
I don’t get this panic over a first team player leaving. ‘Oh he would expect to be a starter’ at Wolves maybe but not liverpool. A team fighting for all trophies. He’s 23?! How about he’s coming in to transition into the team ahead of a future potential sale of mane / salah

The cash issue too. Yes we have a lot of cash outgoings this year but a massive new Secured loan facility unused that we could draw on. Perhaps we saw the signings around us and decided to tap into some of those funds to strengthen the team. Hell FSG are all about buying low and selling high so why would they allow us to drift away from our current position.

Ffp not an issue given past years performance and cash and profit are 2 completely different thing.

Would like to hear your view on this Ed002 please. Change of tact maybe from fsg? Adding a bit more external debt.

18 Sep 2020 22:53:05
Jota is an addition not a replacement. I feel that this would be the end of the incomings. Sarr will not be this window. Maybe next as a replacement for either Salah or Mane.

19 Sep 2020 03:30:06
That's a statement from OP that asks why we are 100+mill for 3 signings when we had no apparent money yet only 2 of those will happen. What make a you think that sarr will arrive also for 40 mill when jota is obviously the one player we added for attacking roles and no suggestion we fork out big money for another. Thiago will cost us 5mil this year and jota too only a percentage of that fee announced so it's likely we don't pay much more than 20mil for both this season which answers your question. We are not suddenly splashing 110mil now out of thin air when 1 of those players isn't even going to happen anyway despite you seeming to think we're guaranteed to pay 40million.

18 Sep 2020 18:02:10
Upwards of £35mil being reported. Are we to assume a few players have some decent offers on the table in the background Ed’s?

{Ed002's Note - Liverpool are working very hard to move players on.}

18 Sep 2020 16:34:57
With Sky reporting that we are interested in Diego Jota is there a possibility that we could offer Hoover along with cash to acquire Jota, Ed's are you able to offer insight on this.

{Ed002's Note - No, Hoever is being sold. If subsequently Liverpool wish to drop interest in others and move to Jota that would be a separate matter. Obviously he would expect to be a starter rather than simply cover for Mane.}

18 Sep 2020 17:09:36
It seems there is real interest in Jota now Ed, I can’t see him starting over Mane however, good back up for him and Salah imo.

18 Sep 2020 17:27:10
Lots of games in a short span of time this season. Jota will get plenty of game time regardless. We need better rotation options than Origi and Shaq, so Jota definitely improves our squad.

18 Sep 2020 17:35:01
Or maybe he replaces one of the front three.

18 Sep 2020 17:39:21
Red67 if we suddenly splash the cash on a CB then that could be true.

18 Sep 2020 17:45:33
United dominated for years with 4 forwards.

18 Sep 2020 18:24:16
Jota can play as striker and number 10 as well so definitely gives us lots of options for rotation with Bobby, Sadio, Takumi. Especially with Brewster leaving I think it's the perfect addition and would leave us with perhaps a CB only left to sign.

18 Sep 2020 18:29:44
they obviously think he can replace mane/ mo longterm. 1 will go next season without a doubt.

18 Sep 2020 18:31:48
Absolutely Drogie and that was was when they were playing only 3 up front.
Not to mention Chelsea have 7 forwards.
I would be disappointed to see Brewster go though. I think he would have more to offer than Origi and Shaq in time.

18 Sep 2020 18:43:03
If we do get Jota, that's a great signing. He'll get plenty of game time. Look at Chelsea now, they have tammy/ werner Pulisic, Ziyech and Havertz, as well as Mount and Kovacic. We are finally getting top players to round out the entire squad. City have done it for years. I do think we may need to move on possibly Shaq and another MF, probably Gujic now (I'd prefer to keep him, but I think he's the most likely to be sold) . I also think this hints Brewster may very much be on the move soon.

18 Sep 2020 21:54:15
Maybe he just wants to win some trophies.

18 Sep 2020 22:09:51
There’s been talk of maybe going 4-2-3-1 at times.
A front 4 of Jota, Firmino, Mané and Salah is mouthwatering.
Games every 3/ 4 days also means there will be more rotation too as I believe Klopp has already indicated.

18 Sep 2020 16:50:34
Thanks for the quick reply, always appreciated.
Keep up the good work.

18 Sep 2020 16:52:33
Do you know which others we are looking at, I know that you probably have already covered this but I may of missed it.

{Ed002's Note - The likes of TRaore and Sarr who Klopp has been vocal about.}

18 Sep 2020 15:36:42
I saw online that the notorious black Mercedez Van with the tainted windows just pulled into Melwood. Wonder who's in it.

{Ed025's Note - the A team?..

18 Sep 2020 15:07:33
The latest rumour from the Daily Mail is Ki-Jana Hoever is off to Wolves for 10 million.

Another academy prospect looks to be gone.

Real shame if so, thought he would be a great CB for us in the future under the guidance of his fellow Dutch international Van Dijk.

18 Sep 2020 15:49:48
Apparently real interest in Jota coming the other way.

18 Sep 2020 15:57:04
I think I would be *okay* with that Ginger. What about you?

18 Sep 2020 16:01:36
Sounds fine to me 😜.

19 Sep 2020 04:02:50
How many other academy prospects have we lately moved on which has proven bad judgement? Camacho, bobby Duncan are the only ones in recent years with similar prospect to Hoever so we're hardly letting them slip away wrongly. Hoever could bring in 10mil for a player yet to even be involved in more than a few less important games. Trent and Joe are early 20s and occupy his positions so why expect him to grow into a star when there's little room for him to play regularly for years ahead. If his fee is similar to what kostas cost it's clear that we've added a player who's far more proven and useful for the years ahead. If clyne and lovren were the current starters in those positions as we had 2 or 3 years ago then that would be different to how we are shaping up currently. Also why it's stupid to keep grujic when he's so far back in pecking order, if a fair offer is there we have to see the sense that cashing in can be wise especially for a prospect yet to show any convincing progress as yet.

18 Sep 2020 12:41:44
Ed002 is there any new news on players leaving seen loads of are players linked with moves away have any clubs should any real interest in any players. I see a lot about us hoping to add a wide player if we did I would think Origi's days would be numbered he all ready looks like he has fallen behind Minamino do you know if any clubs have a interest in him.

{Ed002's Note - Liverpool have agents working on finding their players new clubs but they are struggling to find buyers to bring much needed cash. At present efforts surround asking for loans. It has to be resolved in the next couple of weeks. I am not aware of any approached to Liverpool for DO but his agent will have been speaking with clubs.}

18 Sep 2020 13:18:56
Cheers Ed002.

18 Sep 2020 10:14:47
Ed’s - after a busy few days with Thiago we seemed to be linked with every winger/ forward going. I know Ed002 has said we need to clear out players before we look to get anymore in, but there seems to be a link with Ousmane Dembele on loan which from memory was one of the forwards enquired for a few months back. Is there any truth to a potential loan move, guessing it would have to be a loan to buy potential replacement for Salah in the future.

{Ed002's Note - Ousmane Dembele (LW/RW/F) Barcelona could be stuck with the player as it is unlikely other clubs will match their valuation and his recent injury may be a problem in terms of proving fitness - unless he can be used as part of another transfer, loaned or the price drops considerably. Liverpool had enquired after his price earlier in the but likely only want a loan with an option to buy - if that were to become an obligation to bu then it could be possible. PSG would resist his involvement as part of a deal for Neymar and Barcelona have moved on from him. Juventus could be open to a loan but will not want to buy the player. This could be very disruptive to other transfer plans. Player is not keen on leaving Barcelona and has been working hard to prove himself to the new coach.}

18 Sep 2020 11:07:19
Dembele and working hard aren’t words I would think go in the same sentence.

18 Sep 2020 10:40:30
Like you said in the past ED02, He is a player Klopp rate pretty high. How do you rate him as a player? He had tremendous hype when he was at BVB.

cheers.

{Ed002's Note - Overpriced when he left Borussia Dortmund and has had lots of difficulties but working hard to impress RK.}

18 Sep 2020 11:24:52
Ed2, do you think Liverpool still have the interest in Dembele or would our approach for Sarr (if there has been one) likely mean we’ve moved on?

Thanks in advance.

{Ed002's Note - I would think interest in Dembele remains.}

18 Sep 2020 12:43:10
Thanks, mate. Not sure what made Klopp fall for the guy.

18 Sep 2020 15:00:49
Thanks for the reply Ed. Would you think interest remains for this window? Also, would the obligatory fee be massive or reasonable? Are Barcelona prepared to take a loss on Dembele?

Thanks.

{Ed002's Note - Liverpool are not in a position to buy the player.}

18 Sep 2020 09:11:56
Patson daka's value is £18 million according to transfermkt, tho you would probably pay a fair bit more.
I would say even if it was close to 30 Mill he looks a hell of a player for a young lad, would much prefer him over sar myself.