Liverpool are seemingly intent on landing another midfielder this summer. Despite already signing James Milner from Manchester City, the seven players in the list below have all been linked with moves to Merseyside.
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Brendan Rodgers is clearly after further reinforcements to compensate for the loss of Steven Gerrard, who has joined LA Galaxy following the expiration of his contract.
His departure leaves Joe Allen, Lucas Leiva and Jordan Henderson as our only recognised options in the middle of the part, along with Milner and youngster Emre Can, who spent most of last season as a defender.
In the following list we weigh up the pros and cons of us moving for any of our reported targets and discuss whether we think any of them are viable candidates for our squad next season.
Mateo Kovacic (Inter Milan)
Linked by: The Independent
Pros: The 21-year-old is vastly experienced for his age. He’s already had four full seasons as a starter, if you combine his time with Dinamo Zagreb and Inter Milan, playing over 150 games in the process. He’s a Croatian regular, with 21 caps already to his name, and he has the versatility required to play in a number of positions.
Cons: Inter are prepared to play hardball over this one and demand a fee in excess of £20m, according to The Independent. That’s a lot of money to part with for a player that is still relatively unproven in terms of top level football, especially in the Champions League. We’d arguably benefit from signing a more proven talent.
Steven N’Zonzi (Stoke City)
Linked by: Daily Express
Pros: As the Express state, N’Zonzi only has a year left on his current contract, so he’d be available relatively cheaply – £7m is the suggested fee in this report. The 26-year-old is arguably one of the most underrated talents in the Premier League, having helped mastermind Stoke’s steady rise over the last few years under Mark Hughes.
Cons: While N’Zonzi might be a more than decent Premier League player, it’s hard to argue a case for him being much of an improvement on Joe Allen or Lucas Leiva. When the Express are also claiming that Leicester City are interested, then we should probably take that as a signal to start aiming slightly higher with our aspirations.
Asier Illarramendi (Real Madrid)
Linked by: Daily Mirror
Pros: Two years ago the Spaniard was considered one of the finest midfield prospects in world football. While his stock has fallen during two under-par years with the outgoing European Champions, that has only made his suggested price tag all the more tantalising. The Mirror claim that we’ve made a £15m bid, which would represent good business in our opinion.
Cons: The 25-year-old has never played outside of Spain and would surely take time to adapt to English football. He’s quite small in stature for a defensive midfielder and once again you have to question whether he’d offer significantly more than a Joe Allen or a Lucas. Any such significant price tag will need to be justified.
Nabil Bentaleb (Tottenham Hotspur)
Linked by: Evening Standard
Pros: This would be a real steal from one of our top four rivals. The Evening Standard claim that the young Algerian is available for just £10m. Were that to be true, which we doubt it is, we should be snapping their hand off for him. He’s young, with huge potential, and he already has a decent amount of Premier League experience under his belt.
Cons: Signing players from our Premier League rivals has not treated us all that well in recent years. While all the signs point toward this being a very viable deal, the Reds should hopefully approach with some sort of hesitancy. The youngster needs more time to prove himself before we risk taking a gamble on another potential flop.
Radja Nainggolan (Roma)
Linked by: Metro
Pros: A move for the Belgian international is surely a more realistic aspiration than signing his Roma teammate Miralem Pjanic, who looks likely to be staying put this summer (via Sky Sports). He’s arguably the most combative midfielder on this list and the addition of a more old fashioned hard-man – not something we’ve really had since Javier Mascherano – would be welcomed at Anfield.
Cons: Any such move is probably going to require us to break the bank, so to speak. Roma are clearly desperate to hang on to both Nainggolan and Pjanic, while the Express suggest that a whole host of our Premier League rivals are also interested in signing the talented 27-year-old.
Moussa Sissoko (Newcastle United)
Linked by: Metro
Pros: One of the few positives to come out of Newcastle over the last couple of years. The French international is clearly a step above most of his teammates and has the quality to perform at a higher level. He’s 25, so should just be coming into the peak years of his career, while he’d also be able to cover in a number of midfield positions.
Cons: If the Metro are to be believed, then the suggested fee of £17m is surely way too much for a player who spent last season battling relegation. He also lacks the consistency to warrant that sort of transfer. He comes and goes in games far too often for our liking and needs to be producing on a more regular basis.
Hernanes (Inter Milan)
Linked by: The Telegraph
Pros: A cheaper alternative to Inter teammate Kovacic, if this report is to be believed. The Brazilian international was considered one of the best around a couple of years ago and has plenty of experience at playing at the top level for both club and country. His extravagant goal celebration would also be a popular addition at Anfield.
Cons: He’s 30, so is perhaps nearing the end of his ‘peak years’. He’s also spent his entire European football career playing in Italy, which means he might struggle to adapt to the pace of the Premier League campaign. He’s another player that prefers to play in a slightly more attacking role and that might conflict with what we already have.
