12 May 2016

Yes Please: Liverpool could seal 'surprise' Spurs transfer for £20m 'game-changer'; Hamann urges Klopp to think twice

Liverpool star Adam Lallana is currently linked with a £20m summer move to Tottenham Hotspur, and whilst many fans - myself included - will see this as an absolute no-brainer, Reds legend Dietmar Hamann is on the fence, and suggests that Liverpool might be better off keeping Lallana at Anfield.

When asked during TalkSport interview whether Klopp should sell Lallana, Hamann claimed that he has the ability to be a 'game-changer', but admitted that he 'hasn’t done it often enough' during his time at Anfield. Hamann further added:

“If Lallana were to leave, it would be a big surprise because he has shown improved form under the new manager. He is a very talented player...with beautiful balance [and] great vision".

Lallana^ may be 'talented', but that's not enough. End product is what matters, and for an experienced international in the prime of his career, Lallana's creative return at Liverpool is poor:

* Overall: 13 goals/12 assists in 89 games (Goal every 489 mins. Assist every 538 mins. G/A every 254 mins).

* League: 9 goals in 57 games (One every 433 mins). Never scored more than 5 league goals in a single season.

* Europe: Only 3 goals/1 assist in 18 games (One every 317 mins).

* It took Lallana almost 6 months to register a league goal this season (January 23rd vs. Norwich), and after a brief flurry of goals/assists (2 goals/3 assists in 9 games), he's back to his usual self, with 2 goals/0 assists in the last ten games.

It's not good enough, and it's ridiculous to suggest that Liverpool can't improve on a player with such comparatively meagre creative stats. Lallana's apologists endlessly rave about his running/pressing, but where has that actually got Liverpool? Nowhere. LFC finished sixth last season, and are on course to finish eighth this year, which is a regression.

This is what happens managers rely on players who just aren't good enough. Instead of replacing them, Rodgers relied on Lallana (and Mignolet), last season, and ended up getting sacked. Klopp relied on Lallana (and Mignolet) again this season, and Liverpool have basically failed to qualify for Europe (via the league).

Lallana should be scoring/creating the goals to push Liverpool higher up the table, but this season, he has only four league goals to his name, and an assist every 352 minutes (and none in the last ten games, i.e. the crunch time in the season).

When the going gets tough, Lallana fails to deliver. It's that simple. Yes, Liverpool are in the Europa league final, but the team achieved that in spite of Lallana, not because of him.

£20m for Lallana? It's an absolute no-brainer.

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Author: Jaimie K


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