Liverpool are entering a crucial stage of the season as they hope to strengthen their position in the top four and go as deep as possible in the Champions League, if not win it. Manager Jürgen Klopp has had a pretty tough season. The departure of key players has made his job harder.
While Liverpool have added a good defender in Virgil van Dijk, the void left by Philippe Coutinho is yet to be filled. The coming transfer window could see the club add a few more attacking reinforcements as the club will want to compete with Manchester City for the Premier League title.
The rumour mill never really stops and if recent reports are to be believed, the Liverpool could tussle with Arsenal for Real Madrid forward Karim Benzema. The report by the Daily Star states ‘Real are ready to offload the 30-year-old striker,’ so he’ll be a pretty good option for the Reds.
What will Benzema add to Liverpool?
Considering Roberto Firmino’s current form, I only see Benzema acting as a backup. But then again, Benzema is someone who has done it all on the biggest stage. Like Firmino, he is a brilliant player when it comes to holding up the ball and creating for his teammates.
Real Madrid have had a deadly front three for quite a while and the reason why the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale have been able to score quite a few goals is because of Benzema’s ability to set up his teammates in good positions.
His goalscoring record at the Bernabeu speaks for itself and though he has been having a patchy time so far this season, he is still only 30 and can easily replicate his good form for a couple of seasons at least.
His best season came in the 2015/16 campaign when he managed 24 league goals and also played a role in Madrid winning the Champions League.
Liverpool will have to pay a fee of around £35 million if reports are to be believed. For a player of Benzema’s calibre, that’s a fee Liverpool should muster as he’ll considerably improve the team.
Though he has been out of favour with France owing to off the field issues, he’s a player who has scored quite a lot of goals in his career and won it all. Liverpool’s prime competitors, Arsenal, already have Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette, so a move to Liverpool makes more sense.