Colombian Star Wants to Replace Coutinho
Losing Phil Coutinho to Barcelona was as painful as outgoing transfers have ever been for the Anfield faithful, but in the end wholly unavoidable as the little Brazilian had made his mind up. Manager Klopp admitted there was no chance of Coutinho staying and tying him down to a lengthy contract. The Reds have had their share of surprising defeats since his departure to the Nou Camp with a shock loss to Swansea and a fourth-round FA Cup exit to West Brom at Anfield.
It’s far from panic stations, with Klopp’s men third in the league and well positioned in the Champions League with a tie against Porto coming up in the round of 16. A pulsating quarter-final tie at Anfield seems very likely, with the Reds backed at 2/5 to pass their Portuguese test in football betting. The season holds an immense amount of promise, still even without Coutinho, and the summer has the potential to be one of the best yet with the news James Rodriguez fancies a move to Liverpool.
Rodriguez’s stock went through the roof after putting together a string of eye-catching performances during the 2014 World Cup in Brazil and was soon snapped up by Real Madrid. Chances for the Colombian to impress at the Bernabeu have been limited and his future with the Spanish giants looks all but over after being loaned out to Bayern Munich for an unprecedented two years.
The Golden Boot winner from the World Cup in Brazil has started 21 games for the German champions and has three goals and seven assists to his name. Word on the wires now is that Rodriguez is ready to start afresh in England with Liverpool his preferred destination.
If that were to be the case then it’s hard not to see how much that move would benefit all parties concerned. At some stage, Klopp will have to replace Coutinho and the perfect candidate would be an eager Rodriguez who has a point to prove after his career has somewhat dwindled since leaving Brazilian shores in 2014.
The coffers run deep enough for Fenway Sports to shell out the required sum for the Colombian playmaker and would give Klopp and Anfield a chance to see whether a new Fab Four version 2.0 can be born. A lot has to fall into place, but if the word coming out of Germany is true that Rodriguez is up for the move, then there is a sense that Liverpool should act on it.
James Rodriguez ‘wants Liverpool move’ as Real Madrid star plots Premier League switch this summer https://t.co/XkDze2zvk5pic.twitter.com/ugCKukWPfP
— Mirror Football (@MirrorFootball) February 1, 2018
By the time the summer swings around, it is almost guaranteed that the interest in Mo Salah will dominate headlines in Liverpool. The Egyptian is rumoured to be wanted by Real Madrid, Rodriguez’s parent club. Madrid’s pursuit of players is a ruthless one and it’s easy to see how they would dangle James Rodriguez and a substantial transfer fee in front of Liverpool in order to weaken their clutches on their prized man Salah. The chance is there for Liverpool to strengthen and build or get weaker by dismantling their attacking threat.