Liverpool hot on the heels for Leicester City midfielder Youri Tielemans

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Liverpool have identified Leicester City midfielder Youri Tielemans as a potential replacement for Georginio Wijnaldum, who has agreed to join Barcelona on a free transfer this summer.

Youri Tielemans, 24, joined Leicester City initially on loan from AS Monaco for the second half of the 2018-19 campaign. After impressing on loan at the King Power Stadium, Leicester City decided to sign the box-to-box midfielder from AS Monaco permanently in a deal worth £32 million.

The 24-year-old has lived up to his reputation as a top central midfielder over the last couple of seasons in the Premier League, whilst developing into a key player under Brendan Rodgers. For his important contributions this term, including scoring the winner in the FA Cup final against Chelsea at the Wembley Stadium, he was named Leicester City’s Player and Players’ Player of the Season.

The Foxes are keen to extend the Belgian international’s contract and have already initiated talks. However, Tielemans’ stellar displays at the heart of Leicester City’s midfield have seemingly caught Liverpool’s eyes ahead of the summer transfer window, with Manchester United and a few Spanish top clubs also keen on the Belgian’s signature.

Liverpool have already started planning for next season

After a season full of ups and downs, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has to bring in some top quality players during the summer transfer window.

The Reds, who qualified for next season’s Champions League on the final day of the recently concluded campaign, are already close to signing RB Leipzig defender Ibrahima Konate, who has passed a medical and signed a five-year deal at Anfield.

Liverpool experienced an injury crisis in defence this past campaign with Virgil Van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip missing a significant portion of the season. So, Jurgen Klopp and co. moving in to bring Ibrahima Konate to bolster the Reds’ defensive unit is a positive sign.

The front three of Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Salah failed to live up to their usual heights during the 2020/21 campaign, even though Salah managed 31 goals across all formats. To fix Liverpool’s attacking productivity, Jurgen Klopp should look to bring in a striker.

Georginio Wijnaldum has reached a verbal agreement with Barcelona and will sign a contract with the LaLiga club until June 2024. Wijnaldum, who arrived at Anfield from Newcastle United back in 2016, was one of Klopp’s most trusted players and he leaves behind a void in the squad which the Reds must now prioritise filling in.

Youri Tielemans could take the Reds to different heights

To that end, Youri Tielemans is a viable target for Liverpool.

Youri Tielemans has been one of the key cogs in Brendan Rodgers’s wheels, and certainly amongst the club’s standout performers over the past couple of seasons. The Belgian is capable of making an immediate difference to Klopp’s midfield next season, whilst becoming the replacement for the departed Wijnaldum.

Suffice to say, Tielemans has the well-rounded qualities to quickly slot in Liverpool’s midfield, and at 24, he still has a lot of room for development. All in all, the central midfielder boasts of solid Premier League experience and a bagful of European and international experience in his CV to come through the door at Anfield as a marquee signing.



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