During the summer of 2023, the search for midfielders was very high on the agenda at Liverpool.
Jurgen Klopp saw key figures such as Jordan Henderson, Fabinho and James Milner all leave the Merseyside club at once as the season prior highlighted that the Reds needed a change in the middle of the park.
Liverpool would bring in the ‘crucial’ Alexis Mac Allister from Brighton, Dominik Szoboszlai from RB Leipzig, Ryan Gravenberch from Bayern Munich and Wataru Endo from Stuttgart.
It was a complete overhaul from Klopp, but it is one that is benefiting Arne Slot at present because three of those stars have been crucial to the Dutch coach’s success at Anfield this season.
However, some of these players were not Liverpool’s first-choice targets, with two deciding to join another Premier League club.
Photo by Ed Sykes/Sportsphoto/Allstar via Getty Images
Photo by Ed Sykes/Sportsphoto/Allstar via Getty Images
Liverpool dodged Romeo Lavia bullet
Liverpool were determined to bring Brighton’s Moises Caicedo to Anfield with the Reds agreeing a massive £111m fee with the Seagulls for the midfielder, only for the Ecuadorian star to opt for a move to Chelsea.
The west London outfit would deal Liverpool a double blow that summer as Chelsea also won the race for Romeo Lavia.
Missing out on the duo seemed a big hit to the Merseyside club at the time; however, when it comes to the Belgian talent, it seems the Reds have dodged a £53m bullet.
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Enzo Maresca told the media on Wednesday that Lavia will miss Chelsea’s match with Tottenham this week after suffering another injury, which means the 21-year-old has only played twice since the start of December.
Lavia has played just 13 times for the London club throughout the current campaign, which follows a season in which he only featured once for the Blues, resulting in the midfielder missing 80 games over the last two campaigns.
This is extremely unfortunate for the 21-year-old but it could have had a major impact on Liverpool’s season had they signed the Belgian star.
Jurgen Klopp was happy missing out on Romeo Lavia
Lavia is undoubtedly a top talent with Man City boss Pep Guardiola stating two years ago that he was “really impressed” with how the midfielder was performing at Southampton.
“I am really impressed with what Romeo has done and is doing,” Guardiola told the press via ManCity.com. “We had, and we have, an incredible opinion about him. We thought to keep him, but maybe he would not (get) enough minutes like he has in Southampton.”
However, having brought in the four midfielders he did in 2023, Klopp was happy with how things worked out in the end for Liverpool.
All four have contributed to the success the Reds have had over the last two seasons and their versatility has helped solve some tricky situations at Anfield, with Endo recently having to play at centre-back.
Mac Allister has the potential to be a future captain at Liverpool, while Szoboszlai can still level up to become a goal machine from midfield, and Gravenberch continues to develop as a number six.
The future is bright for Liverpool’s midfield three and most of that is down to the Merseyside club missing out on two Chelsea players.