Premier League champions, Liverpool, are looking to strengthen their attack by signing Memphis Depay in the upcoming summer transfer window. According to Marca, Liverpool believe that Memphis Depay’s arrival can re-ignite their attack which has struggled this season.
Depay’s current contract with Olympique Lyon is set to expire this summer. There are no talks between the club and the player which suggest that the player is not too keen to renew his contract. In this case, he is set to attract a lot of interest from big European clubs.
Barcelona have been the front-runners to sign the Netherland international. They even tried to sign him last summer as a replacement for Luis Suarez but Lyon did not allow their star player to leave. It is believed that Barcelona’s manager Ronald Koeman is a big admirer of Memphis Depay. Both of them worked together when Koeman served as the Netherland’s manager before joining Barcelona last year. Now, reports suggest that Liverpool are also preparing to talk to the player and lure him to Anfield.
Memphis Depay to Liverpool: A good choice for Jurgen Klopp?
This is not the first time that Liverpool are said to be interested in the 27-year old forward. Liverpool and Manchester United were in a transfer battle in 2015 but it was the Red Devils who eventually won the race. But under Louis van Gaal’s conservative style of play, Depay failed to flourish. In 2017, Manchester United allowed him to leave for the French club, Lyon.
Memphis Depay’s overall game has improved significantly in the last four years. Even in this season, he has scored 14 goals and registered 9 assists in 31 Ligue 1 games. In fact, he has the second-highest goal contributions (23) in Ligue 1, only behind PSG’s Kylian Mbappe (26).
The 62-time capped Netherlands international can play as a left-winger as well as a number nine. Thus, just like the current attacking trio of Liverpool, he will offer Jurgen Klopp the flexibility to play in different roles across the frontline. Also, it has been a poor season for Liverpool considering they were in to defend their title and now are embroiled in a top-four battle. Depay’s arrival will surely freshen up things and add another dimension to their attack.
The current owners of Liverpool, FSG, are known to sign players at a cut-price and are not averse to signing out of contract players. Whether it be Thiago or Andy Robertson, both of them were bought at a lower price than expected. As a free agent, Memphis Depay has the potential to be an excellent signing for Liverpool. He will able to express himself in Klopp’s fluid system and show everyone in England just how wrong Manchester United were to let him go so easily.
And with Diogo Jota showing tremendous form this season, the addition of another attacker will see Liverpool’s reliance on Salah and Mane reduce considerably.
Stats Courtesy: Whoscored
