IS THIS EX-CHELSEA DEFENDER WHO KLOPP SHOULD BE TARGETING?
According to reports, Liverpool is considering making a surprise signing to return former Chelsea defender Antonio Rudiger to the Premier League.
Despite a quiet January transfer market thus far, the current Real Madrid centre back is reportedly on Jurgen Klopp’s list of possible targets, according to the Spanish magazine “Nacional.”
Rudiger is pressuring Real Madrid to grant him a “considerable salary increase” that “reflects his importance,” according to Nacional.
Virgil Van Dijk, Ibou Konate, and Jarrell Quansah are still Klopp’s sole choices at the centre of his defence while Joel Matip is out for the duration due to an injury.
Many have concluded that the Reds will target a defender in the January transfer window as a result of this, but it’s becoming less and less probable that this will happen.
REASONS WHY RUDIGER MIGHT BE FIT:
Rudiger won the UEFA Champions League because, without a doubt, he is one of the best defenders in the world.
With an abundance of speed and strength, he possesses many of the qualities that Klopp loves to see in his central defenders.
His technical prowess is as outstanding, as the German possesses impressive physical attributes.
With a 90.1% pass completion percentage and 2.37 progressive passes in every 90 minutes, he is obviously a good fit for Klopp’s playing philosophy.
The 30-year-old has made over 200 appearances for Chelsea in the Premier League, giving him a wealth of experience as well.
Rudiger won the FA Cup, UEFA Champions League, and UEFA Europa League when he was living in London.
Rudiger would be a suitable opponent for Konate on the right, especially as Quansah frequently plays as Van Dijk’s backup on the left.
This might, however, make it even more important to avoid Rudiger—a topic that will be covered later.
Nevertheless…
In the end, I believe that the Reds would be making a grave mistake by signing Rudiger.
Rudiger would be reluctant to be utilised as a rotational option at thirty, and that would be especially unlikely given his contract.
However, it’s also difficult to envision him depriving Konate of a significant amount of playing time given he appears to be developing into a world-class defence.
Rudiger’s transfer fee would probably be between £25 and £40 million, and it is quite unlikely that the Reds would pay that much money on a player who is past his prime.
Moreover, Rudiger would probably expect a salary of approximately £200,000 each week, which is even more difficult to understand.
In the end, I believe there’s a greater chance that this acquisition would impede Liverpool’s development rather than assist the team advance.
In the long run, Liverpool would be much better off investing in a younger rotational alternative, who would enable Konate to realise his full potential.
In any case, I continue to believe that Liverpool wouldn’t be forced to act during this transfer window unless there was a significant change in the situation.
