Report: Why European giants dearly want Liverpool to enter race for potential Trent replacement
Transfer activity at Liverpool last summer was sporadic at best, but things could be rather different in 2025.
The Reds made just two signings in Richard Hughes’ first transfer window as sporting director at Anfield, both of which were only confirmed in the final week of August, but there could be several big names to replace in Arne Slot’s squad this year.
It now seems inevitable that Trent Alexander-Arnold will be one of those, with a move to Real Madrid now set to be a matter of when and not if; and despite suggestions from David Ornstein that we already have a readymade successor in Conor Bradley, going into next season with only one natural right-back could be risky.
To that effect, one of Europe’s most famous clubs now seem to be hoping that Liverpool will take an interest in one of their players.
Juventus hoping Liverpool spark bidding war for Andrea Cambiaso
According to Wednesday morning’s print edition of Gazzetta dello Sport (via Football Italia), Juventus are praying that the Reds and Bayern Munich will enter the race to sign Andrea Cambiaso so that they might prompt a bidding war with Manchester City.
The Bianconeri are in urgent need of a €30m (£25m) cash injection after the costs associated with sacking Thiago Motta in recent days, and the Italy full-back is the player at the top of the queue to sell as they seek to balance the books.
The Turin club are hoping to fetch at least €60m (£50m) from selling the 25-year-old and are keeping their fingers crossed that, with the Reds potentially seeking a new right-back, they could pursue Cambiaso and duly instigate an auction for him.
Are Liverpool likely to take a genuine interest in Cambiaso?
Recent links with Jeremie Frimpong and Givairo Read suggest that Liverpool are open to the possibility of right-back recruitment this summer, but will Cambiaso enter the discussion as a genuine target for Richard Hughes?
At 25 he’s in the sweet spot of boasting ample high-level experience while also coming into the prime of his career and still having plenty of years ahead of him, assuming he can avoid any major injuries. His record shows that he can be susceptible to sporadic minor issues, but thankfully he hasn’t had any lengthy layoffs.
Also, while the Italian is primarily a left-back, he’s often played on the right flank as well. That ability to cover both positions will surely be appreciated by Arne Slot, especially given the frequent injury problems in the Reds’ defence this season.
Although Cambiaso’s reported asking price is 50% higher than Frimpong’s purported release clause, the Juventus full-back could be worth considering when the two players’ statistics for this season are compared (as per FBref).
While the Bayer Leverkusen star has a far more bountiful G/A record, the Bianconeri ace actually has a higher rate of shot-creating actions per game (3.52 to 2.72), more tackles and interceptions (51 to 36), a higher success rate for tackling (61.5% to 52%) and take-ons (57.1% to 30.6%) and more ball recoveries (94 to 72).
Liverpool tend to be extremely single-minded when it comes to player recruitment, never bowing to a tidal wave of external opinion. However, if Hughes were to look towards Serie A for a potential successor to Trent, the Italian’s performance figures stand up to scrutiny.
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