According to reports from Spain, Liverpool are among four Premier League clubs showing an interest in snapping up a current star of the English top flight.
Having had a deadline day move for Marc Guehi swept from under them by Crystal Palace at the start of September, the Reds have seemingly not given up in their pursuit of the Eagles captain, according to an update from Fabrizio Romano over the past 24 hours.
Reports from elsewhere suggest that the England international isn’t the only defender in Oliver Glasner’s squad who’s on the wish list at Anfield.
Liverpool showing a ‘genuine interest’ in Daniel Munoz
On Tuesday night, Spanish outlet Fichajes reported that Liverpool have shown a ‘genuine interest’ in Palace right-back Daniel Munoz, whose ‘attacking profile’ is said to be an ideal fit for the Reds’ ‘direct style of play.
Chelsea and both Manchester clubs are also believed to be targeting the Colombia international, who Selhurst Park chiefs unsurprisingly have no intention of selling given the tremendous impact he’s been making in south London.
Liverpool are among several clubs reportedly showing an interest in signing Daniel Munoz from Crystal Palace
(Photo by Molly Darlington/Getty Images)
Munoz is renowned for his extraordinary athleticism
The 29-year-old has been enjoying a magnificent season for Glasner’s side, with four goals and two assists from a right wing-back position before a recent knee injury stopped him in his tracks.
A deep-dive analysis from Opta describes him as a ‘relentless roadrunner’ for the ground that he covers and ‘an absolute freak of nature’ in terms of the energy and athleticism that he brings, with Munoz particularly standing out for the frequency of his high-intensity runs.
It comes as no surprise that he ranks highly for attacking metrics in comparison to other full-backs in Europe’s five main leagues over the past year, but as the table below shows (citing figures from FBref), he’s also quite proficient at carrying out his core defensive duties.
Per 90 minutes Percentile among positional peers
Non-penalty goals 0.14 93rd (top 7%)
Touches in attacking penalty area 3.02 93rd
Non-penalty xG 0.11 90th
Shots 1.01 80th
Tackles 2.87 93rd
Aerial duels won 1.49 84th
Interceptions 1.26 79th
Clearances 3.59 78th
The Colombian is a brilliant player to watch, but in reality it’s difficult to envisage Liverpool pushing the boat out to sign him. Firstly, we know from the pursuit of Guehi just how difficult it can be to complete a signing from Palace.
Also, at 29, he doesn’t fit the age profile of a typical FSG signing, and Arne Slot already has Conor Bradley and Jeremie Frimpong vying for the right-back berth in the Reds’ starting XI, although injury problems for both have led to midfielders like Dominik Szoboszlai and Curtis Jones being redeployed due to necessity.
We’d take these transfer links with a pinch of salt for now until they’re corroborated by other sources closer to home, but we can very much understand why big-budget Premier League sides would be eyeing a swoop for Munoz.
You can watch Slot’s full post-Brighton press conference below, via Empire of the Kop on YouTube: