When Jurgen Klopp left Liverpool at the end of the 2023/24 season, it was widely felt that the German’s successor in the Anfield dugout would be set up to fall by the wayside.
Certainly, when Arne Slot, this little-known coach at Feyenoord, was chosen as Liverpool’s new boss after ostensible efforts for Xabi Alonso and Ruben Amorim failed to come to fruition, many Premier League rivals felt the Reds were set for a period of decline.
Even without Slot’s incredible league triumph last term, he has endeared himself to the fanbase and been accepted as one of this proud city’s own. He embodies the spirit of what it means to represent Liverpool, through the good times and through hardship.
Slot, moreover, has proved himself to be an elite tactician, working with sporting director Richard Hughes to identify players fit for purpose in this title-winning team. He has been aided by the brilliance of Mohamed Salah, who will be looking to go again next term, but the 33-year-old needs some help at the front of the ship after carrying an unbelievable weight of responsibility over the past year.
Liverpool have completed a wide sweep of signings already this summer, but there’s more still to come.
Liverpool's latest transfer plans
With Trent Alexander-Arnold having chosen to leave Liverpool and join Real Madrid, Hughes and co acted swiftly to sign Jeremie Frimpong from Bayer Leverkusen for £29.5m before turning to Bournemouth’s Milos Kerkez, both now part of Slot’s squad.
But the cream of the crop is, of course, Florian Wirtz, who arrives in England a £100m player, with the £16m in potential add-ons perhaps even coming to make him the most expensive player in British history.
Wirtz’s creative ingenuity makes him a dream for any centre-forward, and while he has the capacity to elevate Darwin Nunez’s game, the Uruguayan has gone three seasons at Liverpool leaving plenty to be desired, and improvements are needed.
Nunez, after all, has spent several years working with Salah, who must be craving a superior frontman to channel his qualities toward. Deadly striker he may be, Salah has also racked up 40 assists across the past three Premier League seasons alone.
Eintracht Frankfurt’s Hugo Ekitike is among the most coveted names on Liverpool’s list, and curiosity in his services will increase to something more substantial if Luis Diaz leaves, with the versatile forward being pursued by a host of suitors, including Bayern Munich and Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League.
However, Diaz’s sale wouldn’t only affect the front of the ship. Indeed, it might also advance Liverpool’s interest in another elite talent on the global stage – and he’s looking to play on the left.
Liverpool enter race for superstar winger
According to Spanish outlet AS, Liverpool have registered their interest in Real Madrid’s Rodrygo as they prepare for the eventuality of Diaz’s departure.
FSG haven’t tabled an official approach yet, but then neither have Arsenal, who are considered the Reds’ main rivals in the race for the Brazilian’s signature, with Bayern Munich also keen.
Valued in the region of £78m, Rodrygo would clearly represent a significant outlay for the Anfield side, but if Diaz is sold, this could be the perfect move for them to make, perhaps even starting the beginning of something special with Salah over on the right flank.
Why Rodrygo could be a dream for Salah
Rodrygo is fed up. Despite being considered a “world-class superstar” by former teammate Luka Modric and “probably the most gifted player in the squad” by his current colleague Jude Bellingham, the 24-year-old has slipped into the background at Los Blancos.
One of the biggest issues Rodrygo has at Real Madrid is the rarity of his deployment on the left wing, in spite of this being his best position, his most productive and where his prolific potency is best served.
Even so, to have recorded 25 goal involvements across the season while being recognised to have been distinctly out of sorts bears testament to Rodrygo’s lofty level.
And though Rodrygo will be thoroughly disappointed with his 2024/25 campaign, he has previously demonstrated an aptitude that soars beyond the capabilities of most other forwards across the globe.
While Liverpool already have a world-class winger in Salah, he’s approaching the autumn years of his historic career in English football and will want a player of such a calibre winging Slot’s system to a resounding effect.
Rodrygo could do this. Take, for example, his efforts in La Liga last season. He scored six times, but also missed only one big chance, as per Sofascore. This highlights his natural goalscoring instinct.
Furthermore, the South American sensation registered 12 goal contributions across the season as a left winger, and that’s despite his only playing 12 of his 54 matches in the role, limited due to Vinicius Junior and Kylian Mbappe perching higher up the pecking order.
24/25
54 (39)
14
11
23/24
57 (43)
17
9
22/23
57 (41)
19
11
21/22
49 (25)
9
9
20/21
33 (13)
2
8
19/20
26 (16)
7
3
This emphasises the jackpot Liverpool could hit by bringing him over to Merseyside, establishing a winger with the depth and dynamism of Salah and with similarities in ball-striking too.
Liverpool’s talisman, after all, finished the recent season with 34 goals and 23 assists across all competitions, so crucial in setting his new boss off on trophy-winning footing.
Given that Rodrygo ranks among the top 2% of attacking midfielders and wingers across Europe’s top five leagues over the past year for pass completion, as per FBref, he’s also proven himself to have the ball retention levels and the technical confidence to thrive in Slot’s precise system.
Liverpool need to make their move, securing a wonderful new wide forward who can emulate Salah and thus preserve the brilliance of the Egyptian’s skill set across the coming year, widening the dimensions of Slot’s offensive system too.
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