Brentford crest
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It seems that Liverpool could finally buy a player from Brentford after plenty of seasons of selling to the Bees in recent years.
Liverpool’s defensive depth is screaming out for reinforcements before the window slams shut.
Ibrahima Konate’s contract talks are in limbo at the moment, leaving his future in doubt and Real Madrid circling to pounce on a free transfer next summer if Liverpool fail to tie him down now.
Virgil van Dijk remains world-class any significant setback next season could derail Liverpool’s title defence before it even begins.
Then there’s Joe Gomez, who has already flown back from pre-season with a troublesome Achilles problem and faces an uncertain recovery timeline.
The 28-year-old cannot be relied on for an entire season unfortunately.
Relying on makeshift options like Ryan Gravenberch or Wataru Endo to plug such critical gaps is a gamble too far.
Now reporter Sam Cohen, for GIVE ME SPORT, has claimed that Brentford center-back Nathan Collins is admired by Liverpool internally:
“Liverpool are keeping tabs on Brentford defender Nathan Collins, with the 24-year-old among several centre-backs being monitored ahead of the new season,” he wrote.
“However, a transfer looks highly unlikely at this stage, with Brentford showing no willingness to part ways with the Republic of Ireland international.”
Nathan Collins Per 90 Percentile (vs CBs)
Aerials Won 3.08 88
Blocks 2.03 87
Clearances 5.95 79
Assists 0.08 89
Touches (Att Pen) 1.82 97
Player compared to positional peers in Men’s Big 5 Leagues, UCL, UEL over the last 365 days. Based on 3420 minutes played [FBref].
However, the report is caveated with the fact that Liverpool have not acted on the interest so far:
“While Collins is admired internally at Anfield, the interest remains tentative, and no approach has been made.”
“Brentford, for their part, are not engaging in any conversations around a sale, and it’s understood they view Collins as an important part of their plans under their new head coach.”
At 24, Nathan Collins ticks every box: a £23 million record signing for the Bees in 2023, Collins has played every single minute of Brentford’s 2024/25 Premier League campaign, the only outfield player to do so.
The Republic of Ireland international, standing at 1.93 m and equally adept at centre-back or right-back, has captained Brentford since Christian Nørgaard’s exit.
Crucially, Collins qualifies as homegrown, which could be a big factor depending on how the final Liverpool squad starts shaping up for the 2025/26 Premier League season.
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