Liverpool 2018-19: Alisson, I Know Lovren is Killing You

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Sunny von Bulow
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Everyone talks about Butland, but for me the pick of the English Keepers is Nick Pope at Burnley. To be fair I watched a lot more Burnley matches than i did Stoke or Everton, but I think Nick Pope is class. I'm trying to find comparative stats but i'm sure i read on the BBC that he has a better save % than Butland. When Tom Heaton got injured at Burnley, Pope got the nod and kept the place. He's still got room to improve and i think he will improve.

If Pope has a good season at Burnley he'll go for the big bucks.
Agree on Pope.

Heaton is also very good. I’d take either over Butland.
 

CPT Neuron

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Regarding Gomez (and not perceived as a challenges all), he has size, quickness, and seems most at ease centrally. He always looked to a square peg in a round hole as an outside back. He was pretty impressive fir the national team as part of their back 3, and he has even commented a few times that he feels that he is a central defender.

I know I'm not making the strongest case, but he just looks the part, if you will, of a central defender.

Mostly, though, he just needs to stay healthy!
 

koufax32

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Just one more central defender to go with VVD and the Best in the World and we have a very impressive and deep team.
 

PedroSpecialK

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CB should be pretty much set IMO with VvD, Lovren, Matip, Klavan, and Gomez. I could see a youth signing made (losing out on Akanji looks like it will potentially come back to haunt Liverpool) but overall they should be set. Having an actual shield for the back 4 in Fabinho should help immensely IMO.

Alisson flight tracker don't even worry about it https://www.flightradar24.com/C25A/1d298c3a
 

coremiller

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Are Liverpool planning on selling anyone this summer? 62m gbp for Alisson would bring their net spend this summer to 174m, a huge number. Where are they getting that kind of cash?
 

67YAZ

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Sturridge, Origi, Mingolet, Markovic, Ings...the feasibility of actually selling and/or getting good fees for these guys is debatable. But they are in the shop window and habitually being linked to old friend Damien Comolli at Fenerbahce.
 

coremiller

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Keep in mind also that they received £142 mil. for Coutinho.
Transfermarkt has the Coutinho fee as 112m gbp, not 142, which matches reports of what the up-front amount was before add-ons. And they already spent the lion's share of that on VVD.
 

koufax32

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If this happens, I think it puts to rest the rumors of a Fekir resurrection. Surely they would tap out financially.
 

CPT Neuron

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I'm not sure of the answer, but doesn't Keita count against last transfer window (summer) - or was it a "pre-window" agreement based on the deal counting as of this July 1st?

And it wouldn't surprise me to see the Fekir deal get done as well - Klopp seems hell bent on wanting who he wants and nothing else will do. Seems like FSG is backing him, so lets get the pieces assembled and hit the pitch!
 

thehitcat

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Let's not forget that they budgeted for Naby Keita last summer. So they may not consider him part of this Summer's buys. VVD may also have been budgeted for last summer so while I understand that FFP may have them listed in 2018 the actual 120 million Euros might have been set aside last year which would mean that the Fabinho and Alisson would be the only budgeted buys this summer leaving potential room for more.
 

koufax32

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Let's not forget that they budgeted for Naby Keita last summer. So they may not consider him part of this Summer's buys. VVD may also have been budgeted for last summer so while I understand that FFP may have them listed in 2018 the actual 120 million Euros might have been set aside last year which would mean that the Fabinho and Alisson would be the only budgeted buys this summer leaving potential room for more.
Didn’t think about that. Good point.
 

67YAZ

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Finally, the Guardian reports LFC cleared £40m in pretax profits this year, buttressed by an £11m increase in match day revenue from the new Main Stand. Business is being handled very well.

View attachment 21385
I'll also quote myself to point out that LFC's revenue picture is looking increasingly rosy with the expanded Main Stand, Champions League money, and EPL media money. Flipping a £40m profit last year puts them in a strong position over the 2 years of the FFP window
 

slamminsammya

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Transfermarkt has the Coutinho fee as 112m gbp, not 142, which matches reports of what the up-front amount was before add-ons. And they already spent the lion's share of that on VVD.
It was 112 with 36 in add on fees. 27 of those are virtual locks but are discounted as they come at irregular intervals in the future.

But the broader point is that Liverpool have supposedly some extra cash to absorb this big net spend summer, and that's before they have sold anyone.
 

coremiller

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Whether the Coutinho money is meant to offset this year's business or last year's, the net spend over the two years is the same. They can't use it for both. Either way they are throwing a lot of money around.
 

swiftaw

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I would assume that Mignolet, Karius, Sturridge, Origi, Ings and Markovic are on their way out
 

Clears Cleaver

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Why is anyone surprised that FSG is spending aggressively? Klopp is Theo, he found some undervalued stars (Salah v Papi) and they exist to win and compete with big money teams. They have the foundation of a top 5 club so why not be aggressive to make moves to try and beat the Manchester sides and get back to the CL finals? This is their playbook but happened perhaps a little faster than was expected. They crushed the last few windows in terms of value and turned coutinho into pieces of depth while also getting better on the field. Klopp identified issue in the back and got VVD and now Alisson is 2019’s Foulke. [emoji3][emoji3]

I expect sturridge and the others to play a lot on the tour as showcases. They still need one more In the back but damn this team has chance to be really good

Anyone going to MetLife on the 25th v City? No firminho or louvren or Trent but rest of guys will be there and be nice to see new middies. And how shaquiri plays with mane’ and Salah
 

SocrManiac

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He's a great piece. He has a little of Tavarez rolling the ball to first after a comebacker in him, but he should solidify things nicely.
 

SoxFanInPdx

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Seriously been a decade since we had a great keeper. And I'm not entirely sure Reina was great looking back at it. This was THE move I've craved for a very, very, long time and I'm sure all of the other LFC supporters here feel exactly the same. This squad is going to special.
 

koufax32

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How about the turnaround for the defensive unit since last summer? Add Alisson, VVD, Fabinho, and an satisfyingly emerging TAA...that went from a glaring weakness to a strength rather quickly. This doesn’t even account for MF ball hawks like Milner and Ox as well. When you go from Jordan Henderson as a cog of the defensive midfield to a near afterthought that’s a well designed overhaul.
 

Auger34

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Assuming they sign Fekir too (I think that gets done still) what does the bench look like?

They have Shaqiri, Henderson, Lallana, Milner, Ox, Wjinaldum, Matip, Gomez, Clyne....

That’s a pretty damn deep squad. I assume one or two will have to be sold off?
 

Zomp

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Thanks.

I wonder if Henderson will accept a bench role? A midfield of Fabinho, Keita, and Henderson is very defensive. I'd think he'd have the first 2 play in back of Firmino, Fekir, Salah, and Mane with Shaqiri coming off the bench. That would be fun to watch.
 

koufax32

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With the defensive depth in the midfield, could this imply a shift to a three man back line?
 

Mighty Joe Young

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Sadly not all LFC news is optimistic - the Ox is out for the year ..

https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/liverpool-dealt-massive-alex-oxlade-14925294

Jurgen Klopp has revealed that Liverpool midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain is set to miss the entire 2018/19 season.

The Reds were reluctant to put a time frame on his likely return when he suffered a season-ending knee injury in the Champions League semi-final first leg against Roma at Anfield back in April.

However, it has now emerged that Oxlade-Chamberlain will be sidelined for around a year in total and is unlikely to play any part in the upcoming campaign.

The 24-year-old hasn't suffered a setback and the surgery he underwent eight days after being stretchered off was deemed a success.

Klopp says that Oxlade-Chamberlain had requested that Liverpool didn't release details about the full extent of the injury towards the end of last term as he didn't want to dent the feelgood factor en route to the Champions League final in Kiev.


The ECHO understands that he damaged his posterior cruciate ligament and his anterior cruciate ligament, as well as medial ligaments when he slid in to dispossess Roma's Aleksandar Kolarov. As a result he now faces a gruelling rehabilitation programme.
 

SoxFanInCali

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California. Duh.
Oh, and speaking of that Blackburn game, Markovic (yeah, he's still here) and Sturridge scored in the second half for a 2-0 win.
 

SocrManiac

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I hate prefacing my posts with “I’m first and foremost a Juventus fan...”

In terms of pure impact to world football, I feel like Alisson to LFC is bigger than Ronaldo to Juventus. Juve never had any difficulty scoring goals. They have multiple first-choice set piece threats. If anything I’m having a hard time seeing how Ronaldo is a net positive when considering his baggage as a primadonna (especially if talent like Pjanic bails). However, the upgrade of a competent keeper in the back is going to take Liverpool to the next level.

The goalkeeping position goes far behind stopping shots and simple distribution. He’s going to make the best defender in the world even better (Lovren...) with the simple confidence boost that a basic mistake won’t be punished 150% of the time. I am blown away that the professional like Karius never developed an understanding with VVD that would allow the pair to trust each other. Synergy is a disgustingly overused term, but it applies here: Alisson and VVD are going to develop the pairing that makes Liverpool a true contender on all fronts.
 

Mighty Joe Young

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Needless to say, great news about Allison .. can’t wait to see the full team up and running. Speaking of which ..

Klopp hinted today that Allison would be the last incoming of the window. Not to mention that most of the Reputable Sources are parroting the same line. So .. whither Fekir? Maybe they couldn’t afford both Allison and Fekir? Maybe they really were scared off by the medical.

Here’s what I think may have transpired:

Liverpool were definitely interested in Allison but not at the reported price - originally £90m .. then down to £75m

In the meantime they wanted to give Karius a runout in training and in friendlies to check his mental state and confidence level. An acceptable Karius would save them a fortune.

So they decided to spend the money on Fekir who seemed a perfect fit (especially knowing Ox’s long term injury problem) .. only to have the transfer break down over the medical.

Then Karius’s performance in the friendlies (and presumably in training) lead the club to the realization that Karius wasn’t up to it .. meanwhile, Allison’s price kept dropping into an acceptable range. That, combined with Courtois decamping to Real Madrid and Chelsea sniffing around spurred them into action.

Its also looking like Sturridge is going to stay .. reports indicate he’s looking fit and has been in form .. he presumably backs up Firmino. (A cynic might suggest they couldn’t find a taker)

Ings gets his wish and is sold to another Premier League team .. Southampton?

Origi goes out on loan again, Solanke stays and spends most of the year waiting for Sturridge to break down. (Sadly he will get his wish).

I guess the midfield is Fabinho , Keita and mix and match with Henderson, Lallana, Milner and Wijnaldum. Of that bunch a healthy Lallana gets my vote.
 
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Nick Kaufman

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Time to change thread title?

Ideas:

" A Fekir away from bliss".

"Lacking a Third option in Defensive Midfield".

"Summer Transfer Window Champions".

"Overpaying our way to the Top".
 

67YAZ

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Time to change thread title?

Ideas:

" A Fekir away from bliss".

"Lacking a Third option in Defensive Midfield".

"Summer Transfer Window Champions".

"Overpaying our way to the Top".
“Alisson, I know Lovren is killing you”