Liverpool remain linked with a blockbuster transfer for Micky van de Ven, while Mohamed Salah’s poor form has sparked serious concerns with a reason emerging
Liverpool will complete the remainder of the campaign without a fresh defensive recruit – despite securing one.
The Reds struck a £55million deal, with a possible additional £5m in bonuses, to bring in Rennes highly acclaimed French defender Jeremy Jacquet. But the 20-year-old won’t officially join the reigning Premier League champions until the campaign concludes, leaving Arne Slot’s squad short at the back owing to injuries affecting Conor Bradley, Jeremie Frimpong, Joe Gomez and Giovanni Leoni.
Despite the defensive shortcomings, Liverpool produced some of their finest football this term when thrashing Newcastle United 4-1 last Saturday to halt their five-game winless run in the Premier League. And transfer speculation doesn’t simply cease once the window shuts, with the Reds still being connected to Tottenham centre-half Micky van de Ven. Before a crucial home encounter against Manchester City on Sunday, here’s all the latest news from Anfield.
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Micky van de Ven latest
The January transfer window may have shut, but that hasn’t halted speculation of Van de Ven switching to Anfield, reports the Mirror.
Doubts persist regarding Ibrahima Konate’s contractual status, Gomez’s injury history and teenage sensation Leoni, who is presently out following ACL surgery.
Eljero Elia, the former Dutch international, has given his nod of approval for Van de Ven to make a leap from Tottenham to Liverpool, amid concerns over Slot’s defensive line-up.
He stated: “I think van de Ven has to finish the season at Tottenham [by playing] consistently and show everybody he can go to the next level. He’s strong and has good posture. He can score, he can dribble, and he can defend.
“If he continues like this, I think after the World Cup, he can make a good step to the bigger clubs. Not that Tottenham isn’t a big club, but clubs that are a step above, like Real Madrid and Liverpool. I think it fits his career to move from Tottenham to the big teams.”
Mohamed Salah shocker
Meanwhile, Mohamed Salah’s lacklustre performance this season has been a cause for concern. The Egyptian ace has netted only six goals and provided six assists in 24 matches across all competitions.
Despite not replicating his stellar form that led Liverpool to Premier League glory last year, he did manage to assist Florian Wirtz in their resounding victory over Newcastle.
However, this wasn’t enough to alleviate the worries of former Liverpool defender Steve Nicol, who voiced his concerns over Salah’s inability to capitalise on a counterattack, where he was effectively silenced by veteran Kieran Trippier, aged 35.
The 33-year-old winger also had a tough time in his duels with Lewis Hall, leading Nicol to express his astonishment at how rapidly Salah’s form has dipped following what many consider the best individual season in Premier League history.
The Scotsman voiced his concerns on ESPN FC, saying: “We’ve all been asking the same question. How can you go from there to there just so quickly?
“Generally, it takes a bit of time when you start losing a bit of pace and your balance. Newcastle’s right-back Trippier doesn’t play every week because his legs have gone. Trippier is on the other side of his career.
“A ball was played through from Szoboszlai, it could have been played a little firmer, but Trippier caught him comfortably and Salah, during that little passage, at no stage looked comfortable on the ball. He’s got a guy whose legs we do know have gone catching him, having been given a three-yard start.
“That’s got to be alarm bells. When he was making mistakes previously and still scoring important goals, he knew… he has always been the same.”
Nicol suggested that Salah’s awareness of his declining speed has impacted his confidence in front of goal. He continued: “When he used to give the ball away, it didn’t affect his confidence because he knew he could still pick the top corners out, he could still run past people and score goals and make these assists.
“But now, there is nothing worse for a footballer when you realise you’re losing things and not sure why, but it affects everything you do.
“Now it’s chipping away at his confidence. That confidence looks like it’s shot because any time he gets in a position where he used to pick the top corner out, he can’t get anywhere close anymore.”