It would be no exaggeration to say that this season has been something of a disaster for Liverpool.
Sure, Arne Slott’s side still have a chance to win the FA Cup and maybe the Champions League, but their Premier League title defense is over for a while.
To make matters worse, one of their top summer targets, Marc Guehi, has agreed to join Manchester City.
But it’s not all doom and gloom, and if reports are to be believed, Liverpool have identified a potential dream replacement, someone who has been compared to William Saliba.
Liverpool aim to replace Guehi
Liverpool made a big splash in the summer, spending huge sums of money to sign the likes of Hugo Ekitike, Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak.
It also appeared that Guehi’s services had been secured on deadline day, but Crystal Palace withdrew at the last minute.
In the months that followed, the Englishman remained linked with the likes of Arsenal and City, as well as the Reds, and ultimately joined this month.
Losing out on a defender of Guehi’s quality is far from ideal at the moment, but fans don’t need to worry too much as the club appear to be looking to sign a player who would be a great replacement.
At least that’s according to a recent report from TEAMtalk, which claims Liverpool are interested in Alessandro Bastoni.
In fact, things are looking up for the Merseysiders as reports reveal that the Italy international is open to leaving Inter Milan this year.
It is unclear how much it will cost to sign the centre-back, but Liverpool are reportedly planning an £87m move for him towards the end of the year.
Still, Bastoni is exactly the player Liverpool should be looking at, especially since he would be the perfect replacement for Guehi.
Why Bastoni is a good replacement for Guehi
Now, what Guehi has over Bastoni is his experience and knowledge of the Premier League.
All told, the Englishman has made 152 appearances in all competitions, scoring eight goals and providing seven assists.
But just because the Italian has never played for England doesn’t mean he is inexperienced.
In fact, the Inter star has even more experience of top-level football than the former Chelsea treasure.
For example, the 26-year-old has played 228 games in Serie A for Inter, Atalanta and Parma, as well as 52 in the Champions League.
If that wasn’t enough, he has also won 41 senior caps for Italy compared to 26 for City and England, and also played a small role in his country’s victory at Euro 2020.
In addition to his impressive experience, the Casalmaggiore-born giant is also someone who, like Guehi and Saliba, thrives with the ball at his feet.
In fact, in October 2024, content creator Nieve Petruzziello claimed that the Italian centre-back is “as good as Van Dijk or Saliba” in this regard.
That may sound hyperbolic, but if you look at his underlying numbers, you’ll see that’s actually not the case.
Bastoni’s scouting report | ||
|---|---|---|
statistics | around 90 | percentile |
assist | 0.15 | Top 1% |
xA: Expected assist | 0.11 | Top 1% |
key pass | 0.92 | Top 1% |
Pass into the penalty area | 1.46 | Top 1% |
Cross into the penalty area | 0.57 | Top 1% |
cross | 2.28 | Top 1% |
Actions that create shots | 2.33 | Top 1% |
bring it to the final third | 1.91 | Top 1% |
Carry into the penalty area | 0.25 | Top 2% |
progressive carry | 1.91 | Top 3% |
Action to create a goal | 0.25 | Top 4% |
Tackle (3rd time) | 0.25 | Top 5% |
carry | 54.94 | Top 5% |
All stats via FBref | ||
According to FBref, he ranks in the top 1% of centre-backs in Europe’s top five leagues for assists, key passes, crosses, passes into the penalty area and carries into the final third, all with 90 points.
In other words, the Italian monster can not only do all the dirty work that defenders have to do, but he can and will play a key role in the team’s build-up play, much like the Gunners’ star centre-back.
Ultimately, it won’t be easy to get this deal done, but Liverpool should do everything in their power to sign Bastoni this year. He would be the perfect replacement for Guehi, if not a complete upgrade.
‘This player is 20 years old’ – Liverpool preparing secret January contract
The Reds have yet to sign a contract this month.
