The Premier League transfer window might have ended but the rumour mill never stops, does it? Latest reports by TalkSPORT claim that Premier League leaders Liverpool will make a move for Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Adrien Rabiot in January.
Jürgen Klopp is a keen admirer of the 23-year old midfielder and he’ll be hoping that the Frenchman doesn’t move to Barcelona in the next few weeks. The Blaugrana are in the market to strengthen their midfield and after being rebuffed by Manchester United in their approach of Paul Pogba, they could move in for Rabiot.
Adrien Rabiot – Fact file
It seems like Rabiot has been around forever despite only being 23. He broke into the PSG senior team when Carlo Ancelotti was at the helm and made his debut as a teenager against Bordeaux. He didn’t get too many starts in his debut season but with time, he has managed to get himself ahead in the pecking order.
Last season, he made the most number of appearances in the league with 27 starts and six games off the bench. He played in a central midfield role and managed five assists.
What will Rabiot add to the team?
Liverpool managed to sign Fabinho in the summer and Naby Keita finally joined the club after agreeing to a move last year. The two have added a lot of depth to the midfield.
At this point in time, Rabiot would only add more depth to the squad. In terms of style, he is pretty similar to Fabinho who likes to sit in front of the defence and spray the ball around. Like Fabinho, Rabiot is a good reader of the game and his ability to intercept passes is something that’ll help the team.
Rabiot had a pass completion rate of 92.2% last season and managed 1.8 tackles a game. PSG have an incredible attacking trio of Neymar, Cavani and Di Maria, so someone like Rabiot in midfield who can pick the forwards with ease has helped the team.
In fact, PSG’s attack has sort of shackled Rabiot in midfield. The Frenchman is himself a great box to box player and his ability on the ball none. If he does play in Klopp’s system, he could end up with more goals and assists.
New PSG manager Thomas Tuchel is a keen admirer of the player and would like to keep him at the club. But with only a year remaining on his contract, Liverpool will fancy their chances of trying to agree a pre-contract deal come January.
Stats via Whoscored
