6 Nov 2015

Transfer Battle: Liverpool fighting to sign 'explosive' €25m Barcelona attacker who 'will' leave next summer

Liverpool are once again being linked with a move for on-loan Barcelona star Cristian Tello, and new reports this week suggest that the Reds are in a transfer 'tug of war' with Merseyside rivals Everton in a bid to seal the deal.

According to the Liverpool Echo this week:

"Liverpool and Everton are involved in a transfer tug of war for Cristian Tello".

24-year old Tello will definitely be available in the summer, and the Spaniard's agent confirmed this on Wednesday, when he told reporters:

"Tello's future is not at Barca. He will move on, and there is plenty of interest from other countries".

Liverpool Transfer Timeline (Most recent links):

* Sep 2013: Tello confirmed Liverpool's interest: Marca: "I knew that Liverpool were interested in me, but I never planned to leave".

* Dec 2013: Spanish newspaper Radio Barca reported: "Tello is close to joining Liverpool on loan".

* Jan 2013: Gazetta Dello Sport journalist Tancredi Palmeri claimed: "Liverpool getting Tello on loan is very close to happening: Just had a confirmation from internal source from Barcelona"

* May 2014: Spanish newspaper Sport claimed that Liverpool were 'in talks' with Tello over a possible deal.

Tello - who has a €25m - wants to stay at Porto, but will the club be willing to meet his buyout clause? Porto have never spent more than €20m on a single player, so unless Barcelona drop their asking price, it's unlikely that 'explosive' Tello will remain in Portugal.

At Liverpool, Jordon Ibe is the only dedicated winger in the first-team squad, so the Reds desperately need attacking players capable of providing genuine width. Tello fits the bill, and his stats at Porto are creditable (21 goals/assists in 46 apps), but there are (arguably) better options out there (Yarmolenko, for example).

The other option is to give Lazar Markovic another chance next season. There's doesn't appear to be any chance of bringing the Serb back in January, but he'll return to Anfield next summer, and given his £20m transfer fee, it's probably prudent to see if Klopp can get anything out of him before the club cuts its losses.

There are also academy options to consider, such as Sheyi Ojo, Ryan Kent, and Sergi Canos, all of whom are wide players. Given Klopp's positive impact on Jordon Ibe, it'll be interesting to see what he can do with those three.

My personal preference: Ditch Markovic; sign Yarmolenko, and promote Ojo, Kent, and Canos to the first team squad.

Author: Jaimie K


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