Liverpool and Barcelona battle for'next Kylian Mbappé'amid transfer race for£36m midfielder

Anfield Talk
by Anfield Talk October 06, 2022

Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp has revealed his admiration for Arsenal attacking midfielder Martin Ødegaard ahead of the sides meeting at the Emirates Stadium at the weekend.

"I really like him. It’s easy [for him] these days. It was a bit more difficult at the start of his career when he was at Real Madrid. Then it looked like it might not go his way," Klopp told Norwegian channel TV2 (via 90Min).

"I was really disappointed by that because we wanted him in Dortmund when he was very young. We had a long conversation when he was still a boy, together with his father. In the end, he decided on Madrid, and that’s fine, but that’s why I’ve always followed him."

Liverpool also wanted the player and he spent some time with Brendan Rodgers' squad at Melwood when he was around 15, but ended up moving from Strømsgodset to Real Madrid.

Liverpool are set to make a move for Rennes forward Kamaldeen Sulemana at the request of Jürgen Klopp, according to Spanish website El Nacional, who claim that the German is a big fan of the 20-year-old Ghanian.

Both Barcelona and Real Madrid are also said to be interested in the former Nordsjælland forward who has previously been compared to France superstar Kylian Mbappé.

Sulemana has scored six times in 37 matches for Rennes so far since moving there around 12 months ago for £17m but has a very high ceiling and plenty of potential.

Liverpool could do with another forward player if they are to persist with playing a front four and having lost both Divock Origi and Takumi Minamino in the summer without signing a replacement, they would be wise to consider adding some more depth

Liverpool are set to battle PSG, Manchester United and Tottenham to sign Inter Milan midfielder Marcelo Brozović, according to Italian website Calciomercato. Turning 30 in November, the Croatian is valued at £36m by Transfermarkt.

The report states that Arthur Melo is set to return to Juventus when his loan spell at Anfield ends, though while some have suggested that the Brazilian has yet to impress at Liverpool, the Reds were always likely to send their stop-gap signing back and he is still gaining match sharpness.

Brozović is said to be the man that Liverpool have identified to bolster their midfield ranks at the end of the season, alongside Jude Bellingham. With three midfield players out of contract, they are going to need at least a couple of additions to fill the void.