Liverpool have now reportedly launched an offer worth more than £40m to sign a Barcelona wonderkid in the hope of succeeding Mohamed Salah.
Szoboszlai sends Arsenal "champions" reminder
Liverpool enter the Emirates as wounded champions this evening, with many predicting that Arsenal will send their latest title statement on their way to potential silverware.
Dominik Szoboszlai has not forgotten who the Reds are, however, and sent a timely reminder to the Gunners that they remain challengers rather than the Premier League champions.
He told reporters: "It's a long way. The Premier League is not easy and you don't win it by January, I don't think so [playing against the champions].
Arne-Slot Related
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The Reds have been underwhelming this season to put it lightly.
"They are playing against the champions. They know as well, they are one of the favourites and an unbelievable team with unbelievable players.
"They can't forget about City and Villa, they are doing really well. No, we don't play against the champions; they are playing against the champions."
It's a bold statement, but the type that Liverpool must have in mind as they travel to North London. Their ego has been damaged almost beyond repair in recent months, yet Szoboszlai's words should reignite the kind of arrogance that helped Arne Slot's side on their way to glory last season.
To do so, they may well have to perform without an out-and-out striker for the second game running, however, following the latest update on Hugo Ekitike.
The Frenchman's injury has exposed Liverpool's attacking depth. Despite spending big in the summer, breaking their transfer record twice, the Reds have been left incredibly short after just three absences emerged. That simply must change.
Liverpool launch £40m+ offer to sign Roony Bardghji
Attempting to find the depth that they so desperately need, those at Anfield have seemingly turned towards Barcelona. According to reports in Spain, Liverpool have launched an offer to sign Roony Bardghji worth €50m (£42m) this month.
The winger could become the ideal replacement for Salah, who looks increasingly likely to call time on an iconic Liverpool career in the summer.
Whilst replacing the Egyptian will be no easy task, signing Bardghji to do exactly that would make perfect sense. The 20-year-old has shown flashes of his quality at Barcelona this season and they could enjoy the economic benefit of selling a young player who's yet to become a starter under Hansi Flick.
roony-bardghji-barcelona
The Swede recently starred in Barcelona's Spanish Supercopa semi-final victory over Atheltic Club, scoring once and creating two others in a 5-0 thumping, and it's clear to see where comparisons to Lamine Yamal have come from.
The club's sporting director Deco told reporters when Bardghji first arrived: “We had Dani Rodríguez for that position, but Dani got injured, and he's a different profile than Roony, who's more similar to Lamine, who comes in and links up.”