5 Mar 2016

Talks Held: Klopp invites 'fantastic' £20m attacker to play for Liverpool 'next season'

In October, multiple reports claimed that Jurgen Klopp wanted to recall on-loan Liverpool attacker Lazar Markovic, and although that didn't happen, Klopp has now confirmed that Markovic will get a chance to prove himself at the club next season.

When asked about Markovic on Friday, Klopp told the Liverpool Echo:

“We had a little talk...and if he [Markovic] wants to come back to Liverpool, he’s welcome. We are short on wingers. Everybody involved in pre-season can have a part to play next season".

Klopp also confirmed that Markovic - hailed by Jordan Henderson as a 'fantastic player - is currently injured, which is why he's on Merseyside this week.

Markovic in Numbers

* 58 weeks as a Liverpool player.

* £20m Transfer fee.

* £60k-a-week salary (£3.5m over 58 weeks)

* £23.5m total cost to Liverpool(£20m transfer fee + £3.5m salary)

* 34 appearances overall.

* 4 goals/assists in 34 appearances (3 goals/1 assist).

* 1880 minutes played for LFC (Average 55 mins per game).

* £7.8m cost-per-goal.

* £12500 earned for every per minute of pitch time.

Ouch! Markovic is not doing much better at Fenerbahce, either. So far, he's grabbed 2 goals/3 assists in 20 games (Goal every 587 mins), and he hasn't scored a single league goal all season. Plus, he's suffered three separate hamstring injuries already this year, and missed 12 games as a result.

As a comparison: ex-Red Dirk Kuyt has 24 goals/assists in 30 games in the Eredivisie (a league of comparative quality), and he is 35 (!)

Reds legend Mark Lawrenson just about summed it up in a recent interview:

"Markovic didn't do enough at Anfield, and you can only give a player so many chances. You have to be realistic and a touch harsh: How many times did he get to the byline and cross? How many did he score? Not many".

If markovic can't do the business in the Turkish league, he's not going to excel in the Prem. As such, Liverpool should just sell him to the highest bidder, and use the money to buy Andriy Yarmolenko.

Author: Jaimie K


0 Comments:

Post a Comment