Arne Slot is looking to sign a striker and Victor Osimhen is the perfect fit
Arne Slot took just ten days to has flip the narrative around Liverpool’s transfer window from disappointment and anger towards Trent Alexander-Arnold for joining Real Madrid on a free deal to ecstasy at the Premier League record signing of Florian Wirtz, and there should be more to come with a superstar striker next on the shopping list.
Liverpool enjoyed dazzling success under Jurgen Klopp with more withdrawn centre forwards (or bonafide false nines) like Roberto Firmino and Diogo Jota who would chip in with goals but also play a major role in servicing the Reds’ goalscoring wingers.
Mohammed Salah and Sadio Mane have ruled Liverpool’s golden boot award with an iron fist since the 2016/17 as Firmino and Jota never stood a chance with the African duo on tearing it up on Merseyside but that could be about to change if the Reds pull off a bold swoop for Victor Osimhen.
Slot obviously made this system work as he guided Liverpool to their second Premier League title but the record arrival of Florian Wirtz and Salah celebrating his 33rd birthday this weekend signal the champions will be moving in a different direction under the Dutchman and Osimhen will slot seamlessly into that new look.
Priced at £59 million, the Nigerian won’t isn’t cheap but Slot could have just the player to send in exchange for more than halving that price tag, in the form of Harvey Elliott.
Victor Osimhen fills Liverpool need perfectly
Wirtz showed his magical ability to always find space in the final third even in Liverpool's 4-0 thrashing of Bayern Leverkusen in the first week of last season's Champions League, the Teflon talisman is impossible to mark out of the game and ties the opposition defence up in knots if they try to shackle him too tightly.
While we're not retiring Salah just yet, Wirtz is undeniably Liverpool's star of the future and unlike the Egyptian he's a creative one first and a goal machine second.
The German has notched 65 assists for Bayer Leverkusen compared to 57 goals so Liverpool require a striker who will stretch the defence and find pockets of space in the penalty area to regularly turn those chances into goals, and Osimhen is the perfect man for the job.
Since establishing himself at Charleroi as a teenager, Osimhen has averaged around two goals every 3 games and he perfectly fits the mould of a clinical, physical and pacey front-man that will score shed-loads in Slot’s new-look Liverpool.
Osimhen’s average shot distance of 10 yards this season is closer than 99% of forwards in Europe’s top five leagues and with Manchester United also chasing the Nigerian, Liverpool also have the chance to further hamstring their bitterest rivals by signing him.
Harvey Elliott can replicate Scott McTominay effect Napoli
While Slot has talked up Harvey Elliott publicly, even saying he deserved more game time last season, his actions have told a different story.
Elliott played fewer Premier League minutes last season than he did aged 19 in the 2022/23 Champions League and although injury played a part in that, Slot's preference for Dominik Szoboszlai and Curtis Jones in attacking midfield was more decisive in freezing the 22-year-old out.
And if the 22-year-old could only manage 90 minutes on two occasions in 2024/25 front-line games, the writing is on the wall that he'll struggle next season following the arrival of Wirtz and potentially Osimhen, João Pedro, Xavi Simons and Anthony Gordon.
One worry about Elliott is that he doesn't have the pace required to thrive in an attacking quartet in the Premier League, yet is too forward-thinking to be a reliable central midfielder, but that would be less problematic in the more pedestrian Serie A.
Napoli have already turned one misfiring British career as Conte released the shackles from Scott McTominay and allowed him more freedom to attack the opposition penalty area, and the Scot could form a deadly marauding duo with Elliott if Napoli bite.
The McTerminator cost Gli Azzurri £25.7m for a return of 18 Serie A goal contributions and Elliott could have a similar impact, though at double the cost with Liverpool pricing the midfielder at £40-£50m according to TEAMtalk.
Liverpool could book that sum as almost pure profit given they signed Elliott for just a million six years ago, giving them more room to manoeuvre around Profit and Sustainability Rules and effectively getting Osimhen for £10-20m while Napoli could finally cash on in their erstwhile star striker and build a team to consistently challenge Inter Milan domestically and in Europe.
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