The transfer window in England may be shut but the clubs can still lose players, with the European transfer window set to run for a couple of weeks more.
Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool want to take advantage of this situation and are ready to let Croatian defender Dejan Lovren quit the club this summer, claim reports from Liverpool Echo.
The former Southampton star has two years left on his current deal but Liverpool have slapped a price tag of €15m+ bonuses, claim The Echo. Can Liverpool let him leave at that price?
Lovren Now Fourth Choice For Klopp
The 30-year-old joined Liverpool under Brendan Rodgers in 2014 and immediately cemented a place in the first team. He had made at least 25 league appearances for the club in four of the last five seasons, but dropped down the pecking order last season, making just 11 starts.
Known as an error-prone defender, Lovren has lapses of concentration that have in the past, cost Liverpool games and arguably trophies.
He is strong in the air but is not too confident with his ball-playing abilities and at 30, is not a long term option at the club.
Young Joe Gomez was superb alongside Virgil van Dijk last season and Klopp seems to prefer Joel Matip as a backup to those roles in the first team. This has pushed Lovren down to fourth in the pecking order, making him a disposable asset.
He was not even a part of the squad that beat Norwich City 4-1 on the opening day and did not make the trip to Istanbul for the Super Cup against Chelsea. So Lovren could be tempted to leave if regular playing time is up for grabs elsewhere.
Can Liverpool Do Without Him?
However, with Liverpool active in five competitions after their clash against Chelsea, they need to have all their bases covered and should probably stick with Lovren for another year.
Gomez and Matip have missed plenty of games through injuries in the last few seasons and one injury to the preferred CB-duo will make Liverpool vulnerable at the back.
The likes of young Sepp van den Berg and Ki Jana-Hoever might solve this issue to a certain extent but the experience of Lovren will surely be missed in the long run.
As already mentioned, the Croat has two years left on his current deal so Liverpool can still fetch a decent sum for the player next summer.
The Reds are in no need of selling players and unless Lovren wants to leave, letting him go makes very little sense for the club.
He may leave the club on the cheap next summer and though the price he would fetch this summer is decent for a 30-year old, Liverpool have enough games in their 2019/20 campaign for Lovren to get time on the field.
But if the player wants to leave and Klopp has enough trust in his academy players, this is a deal that could benefit all involved.
