FSG have yet to unsheath their transfer weaponry this summer, with frustrations within Liverpool circles boiling over following Manchester United's signing of Leny Yoro.
The LOSC Lille centre-back's transfer to Old Trafford has yet to be finalised but barring an unanticipated failed medical, Yoro will sign for a £52m fee.
The Athletic's David Ornstein had confirmed that Liverpool held a vested interest in the 18-year-old, though tacitly resigned themselves to Real Madrid winning the race, for Santiago Bernabeu was Yoro's only desired location.
Madrid didn't win the race, while Liverpool – perhaps rightly – got sticker shock and felt that a £50m outlay was unjustifiable for a player entering the final year of their contract and with just 60 senior appearances to his name.
So, where do the Merseysiders go from here? Virgil van Dijk is 33 and entering the final year of his deal, while Ibrahima Konate came a cropper at the end of the 2023/24 campaign and Jarell Quansah, talented as he is, is only 21 and was playing League One football 14 months ago.
Sepp van den Berg has returned after a successful loan spell in Germany but is courted overseas and seemingly wants to search for pastures new. Returning to the Champions League, an added piece of mettle in defence wouldn't be a bad call.
Liverpool transfer news
Everton’s former chief Keith Wyness – speaking to Football Insider – has insisted that Marc Guehi would be the perfect addition to the Anfield first team, claiming that a fee of £60m could be sufficient to prise away from Selhurst Park.
Liverpool hold an admiration for the England international but, according to Fabrizio Romano, are not currently negotiating for the 24-year-old's transfer.
Speaking recently, Romano noted: "Guehi has been linked with Liverpool. I can tell you that Liverpool have been scouting the player for a long time. He’s a player they like, for sure."
What Marc Guehi would bring to Liverpool
In July 2021, Guehi signed for Crystal Palace from Chelsea for £18m. The central defender had excelled on loan at Swansea City in the Championship and was regarded as one of England's finest young defensive talents.
Cementing a regular role in the Three Lions' starting lineup at Euro 2024, Guehi's rocket rise to the fore was evidenced in brilliant colour as he thrived under Gareth Southgate's leadership.
It was a reflection of the hard graft put in for the Eagles, having enjoyed an impressive 2023/24 campaign despite spending much of the latter half of the term sidelined due to injury – with Oliver Glasner replacing Roy Hodgson in February, Palace were greatly improved, and Guehi's stock would have risen higher were it not for his luckless injury fortunes.
Matches played
25
6
Matches started
23
6
Clean sheets
4
2
Pass completion
87%
94%
Touches per game
61.6
82.8
Tackles per game
1.1
0.5
Interceptions per game
0.7
0.3
Clearances per game
3.5
2.0
Ball recoveries per game
4.8
4.7
Ground duels won per game
2.4 (67%)
1.8 (61%)
Having completed 111 appearances for Palace, he has earned his stripes and is now on the cusp of becoming one of the Premier League's leading defenders. Moving to ply his trade at an outfit such as Liverpool would aid him greatly in establishing such a reputation.
Hailed as a "monster" of a defender by Palace reporter Bobby Manzi, Guehi would be a credit to Liverpool's backline. He might even prove to be a better signing than Yoro, fully fledged and equipped to lead new head coach Arne Slot to silver-lined glory.
Why Marc Guehi would be a better fit than Leny Yoro
It feels like the Liverpool powers that be are not in concert regarding signings this summer, but there is something of an over-excessive reaction to the lack of action on the transfer front.
Slot has grasped Liverpool's first team into a state of osmosis as he pumps his style into the side, and working out which players are not going to work according to his vision is the central point of importance. Sporting director Richard Hughes has actually stressed that signings are likely this summer but that they are more likely to occur in August.
Yoro would have been a good addition but FSG, like it or not, are circumspect in their transfer dealings. Guehi carries a far greater chance of thriving from the get-go, and thus his signing could be realised in the coming weeks.
Liverpool skipper Van Dijk is expected to lead from the rearguard next season, but certainties are nowhere to be seen beyond the culmination of the 2024/25 season.
Operating from the left side of Liverpool's backline, Van Dijk's successor must also have an ability to perform as such, and while Yoro does not favour his left foot, Guehi has played that role for club and country over the past several years.
In fact, analyst Ben Mattinson has described him as "one of those versatile CBs who can play both sides equally as comfortably", certainly doing his chances no harm as Liverpool chiefs continue to work on the perfect defensive addition.
Yoro, rangy and mature beyond his years, may well blossom into one of Europe's leading defenders, but the Anfield side will not rue the decision to let him join their arch-rivals if a talent such as Guehi was signed.
The French defender already ranks among the top 7% of centre-backs across Europe's top five leagues over the past year for pass completion, at an average of 92.1%, as per FBref. This is impressive, bespeaking Yoro's technical acumen.
Guehi was never going to reach such numbers under Hodgson's Eagle wing last season but he did prove himself in that regard for his nation, completing 94% of his passes.
Liverpool need to sign a player who can instantly slot into the line-up, and Guehi could just be the perfect addition.
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