Liverpool plotting record move for Jan Oblak or Alisson with Philippe Coutinho funds
Liverpool are ready to solve their troublesome goalkeeper position using the funds received from Philippe Coutinho’s looming move to Barcelona, according to reports.
The Brazilian playmaker is expected to complete a £145m switch to Camp Nou in the coming days, with Liverpool at last softening their stance and allowing Coutinho to leave.
And, according to The Independent, the Merseysiders have already begun drawing up a plan of how they can reinvest their massive windfall and will move to sign a new goalkeeper.
Liverpool’s goalkeeper struggles are well known, and a new shot-stopper is as important as bringing in a direct replacement for Coutinho.
On that front, the Reds have identified Monaco’s Thomas Lemar as their No.1 target, though have recently made contact with Leicester regarding Riyad Mahrez as a backup option.
But Jurgen Klopp also wants a major upgrade on Simon Mignolet – who has made several gaffes once again this season – and Atletico Madrid’s Jan Oblak is their top choice.
However, if Liverpool want to sign the Slovenian they will need to break the transfer record for a goalkeeper, with Oblak’s release clause currently set at £100m.
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Liverpool have already set a new transfer record for a defender this January when they spent £75m on Virgil van Dijk, but the goalkeeper benchmark is quite a lot lower.
Manchester City’s £34.7m move for Ederson last summer finally eclipsed the £32.6m Juventus paid to sign Gianluigi Buffon, which had stood as the record for 16 years.
Liverpool will need to spend in excess of that to land either Oblak or Roma goalkeeper Alisson, who has also been monitored this season and is ahead of Ederson in the Brazil pecking order.
The Reds have also been keeping tabs on Stoke City’s Jack Butland, who would be a more attainable target, though they are unlikely to get their new goalkeeper until the summer.
More: Liverpool FC
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