Reds Reportedly Back in for Summer Target
Liverpool are reportedly back in the race to sign previous target Khephren Thuram from OGC Nice.
The dynamic midfielder was heavily linked with a move to Anfield in the summer before the Reds moved on to other targets, but Italian outlet Tutto Juve reports that the 22-year-old is back on Jurgen Klopp’s radar, with the club potentially still in the market for a number six.
Liverpool signed Wataru Endo after missing out on both Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia, but an out-of-position Alexis Mac Allister has been selected as the holding midfielder for the majority of outings this season, leading to speculation that Klopp will look to the market once more in January.
Fluminense’s Andre Trindade was one player heavily linked, but Liverpool’s interest in the Brazilian appears to have cooled.
Thuram has been attracting the attention of Juventus and Inter, but Tutto Juve reports that Liverpool have now emerged as frontrunners to sign the midfielder.
Whilst capable of playing further forward, Thuram is primarily deployed in a defensive midfield role. Adept at breaking up opposition attacks without going to ground, he is also comfortable in possession and looks to move play forward.
One person who certainly is a Thuram fan is Ibrahima Konate.
Speaking about the links in the summer, the defender said: “I would be very happy for him to come to Liverpool. I would take him under my wing and I would do everything for him to progress and become the player he wants to become.”
“Khephren is like my little brother, he’s someone I saw growing up. I was with his big brother in the training centre, but I saw him grow.”
Will it Happen?
Liverpool saw wholesale changes in midfield over the summer, and the Liverpool Echo recently reported that the club does not plan to bring in any new faces in the middle of the park in January.
That said, we have seen with Luis Díaz and Cody Gakpo that the Reds will move early for the right player if they are set to lose out to one of their rivals. If Thuram were earmarked for next summer but looked set to move to Italy the club’s hand could be forced.
All in all though, it is most likely that the club has moved on from the Frenchman. There were enough links from reputable sources to suggest there was real interest in Thuram at the start of the summer, but that cooled dramatically once injury saw him unlikely to get a full pre-season as preferred by Klopp.
It is worth noting as well that at the time we were heavily linked with Thuram we still expected to enter the season with Fabinho and Henderson, it would appear he was never even being considered for the number six role. Had we been looking at him for that position we could have expected his name to be in the mix around the time of the Caicedo saga.
If not in the holding role it is difficult to see where Thuram could fit in the squad following the summer’s transfer activity, in all likelihood this ship has sailed.