Liverpool are expected to add to their squad depth in the attacking areas of the pitch this summer, even after signing Luis Diaz in January for £37.5m from Porto.
With Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Salah all currently set to be out of contract at the end of next season, it seems likely that Jurgen Klopp will be on the lookout for potential replacements, with Ismaila Sarr being the latest name linked with the Anfield club.
What’s the news?
The 24-year-oldhas become hot property once again after his agent Thierno Seydi told Afrique Sports: “It’s clear there are chances he leaves this year from Watford.”
According to Italian publication Corriere dello Sport, Liverpool have since reignited their pursuit of the Watford winger, after Goal reported earlier in the season that the Merseyside club didn’t follow up on their interest last summer.
The report added that the Reds could face competition from Serie A giants AC Milan, who are also keen on the Senegalese attacker with a price tag of £41m.
Liverpool’s future match-winner?
The 24-year-old has scored five Premier League goals in 16 appearances this season, having struggled with injuries and missing part of the campaign due to the Africa Cup of Nations, which left the likes of Watford goalkeeper Ben Foster wishing for his return.
The English veteran said of Sarr’s ability earlier this year: “It’s scary, isn’t it, really? It’s almost like everything seems to just be off the cuff. Every single time he gets the ball, even he doesn’t know what he’s going to do, but it will end up being good either way.
“Once he can start to really drill down on what he knows he can do, yeah, the world is his oyster. Honestly, like I say, the speed and the awareness, the touch, the precision, he’s got all of it. He just now needs all of it to connect and be in control of it too.”
“It’s great to have him back, he’s a game-winner, it’s as simple as that. He’ll win us games, but it puts the opposition on the backfoot as well and I think that’s the important part.”
Having scored important goals against the likes of Manchester United and Aston Villa, along with a brace in a 3-2 victory against Norwich earlier in the season, it’s understandable why Foster views the 24-year-old as a match-winner; and in a Liverpool side who create plenty of chances per game and excel with pacey attackers, Sarr could thrive.
In the 2019/20 season, he single-handedly ended the Reds’ incredible unbeaten run with the performance of his career, scoring two goals and setting up another in a shock 3-0 win over the runaway league leaders, also completing two dribbles and winning more than half of his duels.
Klopp probably still has that performance from February 2020 in the back of his mind ahead of the summer, and FSG must try to ensure that Sarr does the damage for Liverpool rather than to them by bringing him to Anfield as a long-term successor to their current attacking behemoths.
In other news: Klopp could unearth the “new Zlatan” as Liverpool make bid to sign £58.7m star