- Reports claim Liverpool have beaten Arsenal & Barca to Goretzka
- 22-year-old starts for Germany in central midfield now
- Barca wouldn’t offer sufficient wage to Schalke man
- SEE MORE: Ten superb Bosman players LFC could approach in Jan: Messi, Goretzka & more
Here’s a story which initially got us very excited, but one we sadly don’t consider especially trustworthy.
Dan Balon, translated by the Daily Star, claim that Leon Goretzka, whose running his Schalke contract down, will sign for Liverpool in January – six months before the expiration of his deal.
In order for this to happen, Liverpool would have to pay a premium transfer fee, but the figure is not mooted in any of the articles doing the rounds, which increases our suspicion as to their validity.
According to the original report, Goretzka has rejected Barcelona due to a measly wage offer, tempted to play under his countryman Jurgen Klopp instead.
The 22-year-old is a superb box-to-box midfielder, combining technical skills with physicality – making him a perfect replacement for Emre Can in many ways.
Ironically, we’re losing our very own German international midfielder on a Bosman, with the Can certain to depart on a free having decided to run his deal down as well.
Securing Goretzka would undeniably dampen the pain, however.
At EOTK, we know for a fact Klopp is interested, but cannot vouch that a deal has been done.
However, German coach Olivier Bierhoff recently let slip that Goretzka had decided upon a switch to England – so we’re positive that something could get done.