Liverpool ‘in the picture’ for £32m-rated midfielder with more tackles than Romeo Lavia

Liverpool’s summer has been nothing short of chaotic so far. After bringing in two marquee signings, things were looking very positive for Jurgen Klopp, who had made it his number one priority to improve his midfield.

The Reds were then dealt a major blow as Jordan Henderson and Fabinho both left for Saudi Arabia, adding to the midfield trio who were released at the end of the season, which included James Milner. Talks of a potential Thiago exit have also emerged, as he too finds himself linked to the Saudi Pro League.

Liverpool have not had much luck in trying to replace these experienced players either. After Brighton accepted their mammoth £111 million bid for long-standing Chelsea target Moisés Caicedo, the Ecuadorian decided did not even want to join the Reds, and instead held out for Mauricio Pochettino to come back in for him.

A similar situation could be happening with Roméo Lavia too. Liverpool have been linked with him since the transfer window opened and while they have finally agreed on a £60 million fee with Southampton, they still need to convince the 19-year-old to come to Anfield. Klopp himself has concerns that Lavia, like Caicedo, also prefers Chelsea, who bid for the Saints star last week.

The 2023/24 season has started and Liverpool are still yet to sign a new defensive midfielder. Amid the uncertainty over the Lavia situaton, the Reds could be forced to look elsewhere and PSV insider Rik Elfrink has reported that Ibrahim Sangaré ‘is in the picture’ for Liverpool, as well as Bayern Munich and other clubs.

An asking price of €37.5 million (£32.4m) has previously been mentioned for Sangaré and PSV reportedly have a stance of ‘who pays, decides’ as they consider options to let him leave.

Despite being a defensive midfielder, the 25-year-old has contributed a goal and an assist in three appearances so far this season. Last term, he notched eight goals and three assists all competitions. Additionally, he completed more tackles (2.3) and clearances (1.6) per 90 minutes than Lavia, who clocked 2.1 and 0.8 respectively, according to WhoScored?