Liverpool have yet to show their hand in the summer transfer market, with FSG loathe to splurge cash for the sake of… well, spending, really.
Signings. Are they all they are made out to be, glazed and packaged as some gleaming, all-saving solution? Arne Slot has inherited an imperfect team, sure, but he’s also taken the reins at Liverpool – Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool, in fact.
There’s a case that there isn’t anyone actually available on the market that would slot right into the starting line-up, if you’ll pardon the pun.
However, some market opportunities are simply too irresistible to turn from – isn't that the mantra? We’ll buy, chaps, fear not, but only if it’s all just so.
Liverpool's late-stage transfer plans
Back in July, not long after the cameras had first started snapping at Slot, sporting director Richard Hughes, also new, claimed that Liverpool’s summer would lead toward a “crescendo”.
That hasn’t really been the case, for the Reds remain the only team across Europe’s top-seven divisions to have refrained from bringing in a first-team signing, coming close to signing Martin Zubimendi from Real Sociedad in what would have solved the long-standing no. 6 quandary, only for him to reject Anfield's advances.
Now though, according to The Telegraph’s Miguel Delaney, that could be about to change, with Crystal Palace expecting late-window bids for attacking midfielder Eberechi Eze.
The England star’s £60m release clause expired recently but he could still be on the move, with Liverpool weighing up a stunning late swoop.
Why Liverpool want Ebere Eze
Oliver Glasner transformed Crystal Palace last season, restoring rubble to rock following a dreary end to Roy Hodgson’s reign.
If Glasner is the foreman of the Selhurst Park project, Eze is the architect, especially now that Michael Olise has joined Bayern Munich for about £50m.
A skilled and ambitious winger, Eze, who is 25, has been excellent for the Eagles since he signed from Queens Park Rangers for £19.5m in 2020, albeit missing some sizeable chunks due to injuries.
Still, he's been in fine fettle over the past year or two. As per FBref, he ranked among the top 13% of attacking midfielders and wingers in the Premier League last year for goals scored, the top 5% for shots taken and the top 8% for successful take-ons per 90.
This makes for nice reading, as far as number-on-page stuff goes, but Eze's brilliance transcends simple numbers, his rank in a tally. Artful and fleet-footed, he is an electric presence down the left flank with so many ways to hurt his opponents.
He can also operate in a more central attacking-midfield role, shifting through the half-spaces before wheeling away and weaving into the danger area, where he can strike on goal with fearsome intent or use his pace to draw defenders away and create openings for his teammates.
It would be interesting to see how he'd fare at a team like Liverpool's, competing against the likes of Luis Diaz for a starting berth on the left flank, but there's no question that he has the ability to make a difference.
Matches played
37
27
Matches started
32
24
Goals
8
11
Assists
6
4
Pass completion
85%
84%
Big chances missed
13
5
Big chances created
5
7
Shots per game
2.5
3.1
Key passes per game
1.8
2.0
Ball recoveries per game
3.4
5.0
Dribbles per game
1.8 (54%)
2.6 (52%)
Duels won per game
4.6 (40%)
6.1 (48%)
As you can see, he's hardly failed to match Liverpool's starting left flanker over the past year, and he might now even prove to become one of Liverpool's finest forwards, perching alongside Diogo Jota in the starting fold.
Imagine Ebere Eze & Diogo Jota
Stick him on the field, and he shall score. Or assist. Jota would prove to be a worthy partner for any one of the Premier League's finest forwards, for he is one of the most prolific strikers around.
FBref record that the Portuguese ranks among the top 2% of forwards across Europe's top five leagues over the past year for goals scored, the top 12% for assists claimed and the top 16% for shot-creating actions per 90, emphasising the level of quality that he graces Anfield's pitch with – if fit, of course.
Shot-creating actions are pieces of play that lead to a shot. These include moments such as a pass, take-on or foul being drawn.
Jota's a wonderful goalscorer, with high-quality finishing and a remarkable sense of right-place-right-time about him. He's actually been hailed for his "deadly" shooting by analyst Raj Chohan.
Scoring 15 times for the Reds last year despite only starting 19 matches during an injury-hit season, Jota has proved his quality time and time again – with Eze alongside him, Liverpool could finally find the level of striking that eluded them toward the end of the 2023/24 campaign.
No Premier League side created more chances than Liverpool's 102 last season (Manchester City and Newcastle United were joint-second with 97), and the Merseysiders led the way again after two matches of the fresh term, with nine already.
Despite this, there was a level of profligacy about Klopp's unit, hampering the hopes of winning the league title, clinching the Champions League trophy, of triumphing in the FA Cup.
Liverpool burned out. Diaz is great but he's not the most clinical of wingers, while Darwin Nunez has the proverbial heart of the fanbase in his arms but, let's face it, has much to do in the final third before he lives up to that lofty price tag, rising to £85m.
Eze only missed five big chances in the top flight last year and, as noted earlier, ranks among the highest-scoring of his position. Analyst Ben Mattinson has even claimed that he's on his way to becoming a "superstar" – and you wouldn't bet against Liverpool being the club to help him realise that status.
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