Conor Bradley won’t play for Liverpool again this season and some fans feel that a new right-back needs to be signed.
It did not need official confirmation for Liverpool fans to realise that Conor Bradley would not play again this season.
The fact that he was stretchered off the pitch at Arsenal was the first obvious clue. The second came from Arne Slot, who admitted that he feared the worst for the right-back. And with Bradley indeed suffering a serious knee problem, surgery is required. The crumb of comfort will be that the 22-year-old has avoided a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament. That would have been the worst outcome. But Bradley has sustained ligament and bone damage that will require an operation.
Slot lamented an ‘enormous’ blow for the Northern Ireland international, having had hamstring issues over the past 18 months. And it leaves Liverpool depleted of defenders for the second half of the season, with Giovanni Leoni recovering from ACL damage and won’t play until next term.
What’s more, Jeremie Frimpong has to be carefully managed as he’s had hamstring problems since being signed from Bayer Leverkusen last summer. The right-hand side of defence continues to be problematic for Slot. The Anfield head coach has hinted that, against his will, he might have to deploy Dominik Szoboszlai in the role at times.
In truth, that is frustrating to hear for supporters. Szoboszlai has been Liverpool’s best performer this season and is a midfielder by trade. Meanwhile, Joe Gomez - who can deputise at right-back - has had his well-documented fitness issues over the past few years.
Sections of Kopites would like to see Liverpool enter the transfer market to replace Bradley. It appears that Marc Guehi will see his Crystal Palace contract out until the end of the season despite the Eagles being open to a sale for the right price. The Reds look set to wait despite agreeing a £35 million fee last summer only for the plug to be pulled.
Whether the Reds do make a move remains to be seen. But right-back is still an area they could look to improve in the summer given Bradley’s injury problems while Frimpong has been impressive when operating further forward.
Owners Fenway Sports Group (FSG) would likely only green-light a signing if it was for the long term. The American firm have fronted the cash for Virgil van Dijk, Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo in the past. Therefore, Liverpool could well fast-track their plans but only for the right player.
Sporting director Richard Hughes and the Reds’ recruitment department might already have a few on their list. And Slot may well already have one earmarked. The Dutchman could well see one of his former Feyenoord players as the answer.
Givairo Read is one of the hottest prospects in Europe. Per CIES Football Observatory, the 19-year-old is the best player outside of Europe’s top-five leagues born in 2006 or later.
Read was bought from Volendam when Slot was at the Feyenoord helm and handed him his debut in a Europa League draw against AS Roma. To date, he has made 50 appearances, scoring four goals and recording 11 assists. Read is also the club’s third captain despite his age.
Reports suggest that Bayern Munich have been exploring a potential deal. Manchester City and Arsenal have also been linked. It’s fair to say that Read will be getting a big move at some stage. And when asked when to pick between City or Manchester United in an interview with Voetbal International last year, Read made his answer clear when snubbing the pair. “Liverpool, for sure! Nothing else, no one else.”
Per Transfermrkt, Read is valued at around £21.5 million, although he has three years left on his Feyenoord deal and the Rotterdam-based outfit would likely push for a higher fee. Still, it is a deal that would not take much persuasion on the player’s side.
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