Following Arne Slot’s impressive debut season in England, and the news that Mo Salah and Virgil van Dijk will be staying at Liverpool for the next two years after signing contract extensions, UK bookmakers have already made the Reds the favourites to retain the Premier League title next term.
The top online bookmakers place LFC ahead of closest rivals Manchester City and Arsenal, with Pep Guardiola’s side looking like they will have a major rebuild over the summer. The Gunners seem relatively settled but will need to invest in a few players to transform them into genuine contenders for major trophies.
Liverpool’s only real issue will be the loss of Trent Alexander-Arnold, who appears to be heading to Real Madrid when his contract expires.
Interestingly, three rumoured transfer targets have strong Man City links, with one current midfielder, a former striker and a former youth product all being strongly linked with a move to Anfield this summer.
Liverpool close to signing Jeremie Frimpong
With Alexander-Arnold on his way out, 21-year-old full-back Conor Bradley could take his chance to step up, but the Reds have been linked with Bayer Leverkusen’s dynamic wing-back Jeremie Frimpong, with Fabrizio Romano reporting on Wednesday evening that a deal is now ‘close’ to fruition.
The Dutchman started in Man City’s youth system and has excelled in the Bundesliga. He would provide a similar threat to the current LFC vice-captain with his ability to bomb forward, should Slot want to go for a like-for-like replacement.
Another potential target to replace the departing England international is Monaco right-back Vanderson. The 23-year-old already has five caps for Brazil and is a similar sort of player to Alexander-Arnold and Frimpong, and he could be a long-term solution for that position.
Liverpool linked with surprise Kevin De Bruyne move
One of the more surprising stories to come out over the last few days has linked Liverpool with Kevin De Bruyne. The Belgian midfielder has been arguably the biggest reason behind Man City’s recent dominance of the Premier League, but he will be leaving on a free transfer when his contract runs out this summer.
He had been strongly linked with a move to MLS, but that interest seems to have fizzled out, and Slot could be interested in bringing him to Anfield. While he will turn 34 in June, you only have to look at the success of Andrea Pirlo after joining Juventus to see the value of bringing in a player of such experience and quality.
Liverpool exploring potential swap between Alvarez and Nunez
The final ex-Man City link comes in the shape of an Argentine striker who has bagged 27 goals in 51 appearances for Atletico Madrid.
Julian Alvarez moved to the Etihad Stadium after impressing at River Plate, but the talented forward struggled for a regular run of games in a squad which was packed with talent and winning an abundance of silverware. He moved to Diego Simeone’s side to get more game-time and has flourished, and Liverpool are said to be interested in a deal which would bring the striker (valued at more than £100m) to Anfield.
A swap deal involving Darwin Nunez could be on the table, with the Uruguayan forward potentially being moved on to Atletico for a cut-price rate to facilitate the signing of Alvarez. This could appeal to the LaLiga side, who have a history of getting the best out of strikers, and the Reds’ number 9 could see the redemption of compatriot Diego Forlan in Madrida few years ago as something he could emulate.