Paul Joyce has revealed that the agent who was involved in Liverpool’s signing of Philippe Coutinho a decade ago also represented Alexis Mac Allister in brokering the Argentine’s transfer to Anfield.
The 24-year-old’s move to Merseyside was confirmed by the Reds on Thursday morning, with The Times reporter stating for the outlet that the deal will cost £35m after a release clause in the midfielder’s contract at Brighton was triggered.
The journalist was sharing a series of details on the transfer when he mentioned the involvement of Juan Manuel Gemelli, who’s previously dealt with moves involving South American players at LFC.
Joyce stated: “Mac Allister’s camp, including his father Carlos, have been on Merseyside this week to conclude negotiations, while he has also been represented by Juan Manuel Gemelli, who was involved in the deal which brought Philippe Coutinho to Liverpool from Inter Milan in January 2013.
“More than a decade on, the relationship between the agent and Liverpool remains strong, with the outgoing sporting director Julian Ward having been instrumental in the deal. The handover between Ward and his replacement Jörg Schmadtke, who will now oversee transfers, is complete.”
READ MORE: Fabrizio Romano: Liverpool due to hold ’round of talks’ over two transfer targets soon
While it may now be more than 10 years since Gemelli brokered Coutinho’s transfer to Anfield, the positive working relationship between him and Liverpool has been well worth maintaining from the Reds’ perspective, seeing as how it’s helped them to land Mac Allister.
Although some Kopites are understandably scorned by the manner in which the Brazilian left for Barcelona in 2018, it’d be hard to classify his five years with us as anything but a success.
A return of 54 goals and 45 assists in 201 appearances (Transfermarkt) – with some of those being wonder strikes in high-stakes clashes – made the now Aston Villa player a terrific acquisition for LFC in 2013, especially for a paltry £8.5m (Liverpool Echo).
If Mac Allister can enjoy anything like that return at Anfield, he’ll prove to be another masterstroke signing from South America in whom Gemelli was heavily involved.
Who knows, Liverpool could seek his services again for future targets from that part of the world in a few years’ time.