There have been many bumps in Liverpool’s path this season, but there has been some festive cheer at Anfield recently.
In fact, Arne Slott’s side have not suffered a defeat since suffering a heartbreaking 4-1 humiliation at the hands of PSV Eindhoven in the Champions League. The Reds have shown enough fight and quality to turn around what was once a sticky situation.
Hugo Ekitike, in particular, scored three goals in recent Premier League games against Brighton & Hove Albion and Tottenham Hotspur, and was praised by Shay Given, the player of the match commentator, as “real” in attack.
However, Liverpool won’t be satisfied with filling their upfront positions, with Alexander Isak set to be sidelined for an extended period of time, resulting in a new striker target appearing on the Reds’ shopping list…
Liverpool eyeing £70m striker signing
A nightmare start to life on Merseyside only worsened as it emerged that Isak will be out for several months with a serious injury sustained against Spurs.
Losing the £125m attacker for a significant period of time means Liverpool will have to travel in January to ensure they get some fresh bodies up top, with Brentford’s Igor Thiago, the top flight’s second top scorer, reportedly on Liverpool’s radar.
According to a report in Caught Offside, the reigning slot champions are keeping an eye on Thiago as he pursues attacking reinforcements, and it has been revealed that Antoine Semenyo, who is likely to sign for Manchester City, remains on their radar.
However, Brentford are notoriously reluctant to part ways with one of their main stars midway through the season, with the former Club Brugge player now carrying an audacious price tag of £70m on his head.
Still, this could be the price Liverpool will have to pay if they want to sign one of the most in-form forwards in the division. The Reds had no regrets signing Sadio Mane in 2016. Sadio Mane was plucked from Southampton’s youth set-up, only to turn him into a modern-day legend.
How can Thiago become Slott’s mane?
Mane was signed for a whopping £36 million in the summer of 2016 and has emerged as Saints’ energetic attacker, much like Thiago, who is currently in action at the G Tech Community Stadium.
In hindsight, Mane had just started in the Premier League at St Mary’s, and his 25 goals and 10 assists in 75 appearances for the South Coast was enough to catch the eye of Liverpool.
The Senegalese attacker then added to those numbers at Anfield, racking up an astonishing 120 goals and 46 assists for Liverpool before his sensational journey ends on Merseyside in 2022.
Still, former Reds manager Jurgen Klopp is right in his assessment that the winger is one of the “greatest players in Liverpool’s history”, scoring some important goals during his glittering stay that helped them win the FA Cup, Champions League and Premier League.
In the title-winning 2019/20 season alone, Mane scored 18 league goals and was further hailed by former Liverpool team-mate Georginio Wijnaldum as a “world-class” finisher from the German who deserved to be “in the same bracket” as the best striker in the history of the division when he completed his goal century at Anfield.
Of course, Thiago is far from being highly respected in the Premier League at the moment, but he has made a tremendous impact, much like Mane has moved down to the top flight.
Thiago’s PL numbers for Brentford (25/26) | |
|---|---|
status | Thiago |
games played | 17 |
Number of points scored | 11 |
assist | 0 |
Scoring frequency | 128 minutes |
Target conversion rate (%) | 31% |
missed a big opportunity | 8 |
Statistics by Sofa Score | |
But Keith Andrews has already scored an incredible 11 goals in the league this season for the Bees, and the ‘phenomenal’ marksman, as he has justly been hailed by his manager, shows why he is worthy of a £70m move to repeat Mane’s incredible feat.
He delivered consistently “fantastic” performances for the West London side, and, as Andrews waxed lyrical, won the league-wide Player of the Month award for November. Mane is no doubt hungry to step up, as he never looked back when he left Southampton all those years ago.
His stepping up to the plate at Brentford this season after the successive departures of Brian Mbeumo and Yoan Wissa shows he is a striker who can thrive under pressure, and if Liverpool join him, perhaps Thiago could make a Mane-like breakthrough in January.
Semenyo alternative: Liverpool hold talks to sign best LW since Mane
Liverpool have named a replacement as the competition for Antoine Semenyo intensifies.
