Reports have suggested that Liverpool could aim to repeat a particular transfer trick they’ve utilised in the past.
According to Football Insider, the Reds are set to go head-to-head with Newcastle in the race to sign James Trafford, who’s valued in the region of £20m by Burnley.
The Clarets have conceded that they may find it difficult to keep hold of the goalkeeper after their relegation from the Premier League and are expected to sell him, with the Merseysiders and the Magpies both viewing him as an excellent number two behind first-choice stoppers Alisson Becker and Nick Pope respectively.
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Liverpool are no strangers to plucking prized assets from clubs who’ve just been relegated, having signed Andy Robertson from Hull in 2017 and Gini Wijnaldum from Newcastle the previous summer. Both of those went on to become stalwarts of Jurgen Klopp’s magnificient reign at Anfield.
Despite Burnley dropping out of the top flight, Trafford did enough to convince Gareth Southgate to name him in the provisional England squad for Euro 2024, although seven names will be cut from the 33 players selected when it comes to naming the final pick for the tournament.
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That was despite the 21-year-old losing his starting place at Turf Moor for the concluding two months of the season, with Vincent Kompany instead opting for Ari Muric and even persevering with him despite howlers against Everton and Brighton.
The jury appears to remain out on Trafford, then, although it’s worth remembering his starring performances for England’s under-21s in their European triumph last summer, and his heroic display against Brighton in December when he pulled off no fewer than 10 saves in a 1-1 draw.
Whether or not Liverpool push for the Burnley goalkeeper could depend on Caoimhin Kelleher’s future, with the Irishman increasingly tipped to move on from Anfield this year in search of regular first-team action elsewhere.
If he goes, the Reds will need to bring in a replacement, and Trafford would helpfully count towards the homegrown quota. Whether he’d be an upgrade on our current second-choice stopper is less certain.