Neil Jones has claimed that it was likely Jurgen Klopp was referring to Konrad Laimer and not Aurelien Tchouameni when discussing a transfer target ahead of the window close.
The Merseysiders had been keen on the RB Leipzig star late in the window, though fell short of completing a deal for the 25-year-old.
“I think it was Konrad Laimer he was talking about. I did report that the day before the window closed that Liverpool had given up on Laimer. He ticked a lot of boxes,” the reporter told Redmen TV.
“He had a year left on his contract so it all fed into this. I don’t think he was target number one, two or three in the summer, but as it developed they thought it could be a nice little deal and a deal that works and he may have been cheap enough to justify it.
“His agent had a relationship with Keita and Mane so there was a lot of parts to it, but the vibe was that Leipzig weren’t after selling him and the player himself had decided to sit on his contract and join Bayern next summer.”
A lack of midfield reinforcements beyond loan signing Arthur Melo has understandably left a number of Liverpool fans uncomfortable with the state of our options in the middle of the park.
That all being said, it’s clear the recruitment team did make a concerted effort to find a quality midfield addition – the extent to which can be debated dependent on what reports we should believe – with moves made for Tchouameni and enquiries sent to Borussia Dortmund for Jude Bellingham.
Such is the small pool of options Klopp is prepared to see enter the club that it does seem like we are putting all our eggs in one basket.
We won’t begrudge the German tactician wanting only the best, of course, particularly in light of the current struggles we’re facing in that department.