While it has not yet been confirmed just how long Liverpool will have to do without the services of Luis Diaz, it’s clear the Colombian is set for another prolonged spell on the sidelines.
The 25-year-old was pictured in hospital after undergoing knee surgery over the weekend, with his family by his bedside, having complained of discomfort in the joint and returned to Merseyside from the Reds’ mid-season training camp in Dubai. He had only taken part in team training for two days before being sent for further tests, as Liverpool reported back for action during the World Cup break, having been sidelined since limping off against Arsenal since the start of October.
Early reports from Colombia suggested Diaz would be ruled out of action until March. While the club have not yet confirmed a timescale, undergoing surgery will result in another lengthy lay-off.
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With Diogo Jota still ruled out with a calf injury and not expected back until February, it leaves the Reds rather short in attack as they prepare to return to competitive action. Darwin Nunez, Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Salah are their only available, natural senior forwards, and while they can be complemented by the likes of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Fabio Carvalho, Harvey Elliott and Curtis Jones, it is far from ideal.
After all, Jurgen Klopp could call upon seven senior international forwards during the second half of last season as Liverpool fell narrowly short of winning an unprecedented quadruple. And while an attacking revamp took place in 2022 with Diaz, Nunez, and Carvalho all joining the club, the summer departures of Sadio Mane, Divock Origi and Takumi Minamino have now left the Reds short.
With the January transfer window looming, it remains to be seen if Liverpool will strengthen their attacking ranks in the weeks ahead. Plenty has been said about FSG’s hesitance to act in the market in recent years, with Klopp himself hinting he would like it if they occasionally took more risks when speaking in the summer.
Yet the German would also claim the Reds’ door is open to transfers in January and that discussions have been held with club bosses behind the scenes prior to the World Cup break, even though no decisions have yet been made.
In truth, you could see Liverpool’s argument both for and against signing a new forward. On one hand Diaz and Jota will return within three months, Oxlade-Chamberlain remains contracted for another six months and is versatile enough to play anywhere across the front three, and they would loathe to block Elliott, Carvalho and Jones’ pathway to first team action.
But on the other hand, that’s three months where the Reds only have three prolific goalscoring options, and you’re playing one of them, a £64m striker at that, out of position on the left. Such a situation will risk them suffering injuries themselves, with only raw youngsters or an injury-prone, out of contract, out of position midfielder to call upon in reserve.
Say Klopp would like to see another forward signed in January. Liverpool’s situation is still a strange one considering FSG’s public admission they are actively searching for new investors, with it also confirmed they would be open to a new takeover. Just how much they would be willing to spend on their remaining transfer activity, despite insisting it’s business at usual at Anfield, remains to be seen. Yet their search for new investment confirms the club’s American owners concede they don’t have the funds to compete with the Man Citys, Newcastle Uniteds and Paris Saint-Germains of this world.
And then there’s the Reds’ well-publicised interest in long-standing target Jude Bellingham. Klopp’s first-choice target to strengthen his midfield in 2023, it will likely take a club-record fee to land the England international from Borussia Dortmund with recent reports continuing to suggest he’ll cost comfortably more than £100m. What would be left in the club’s coffers for transfers beyond such a fee?
Considering Liverpool have lost two left-sided forwards to injury, it would be easy to suggest a January move for Cody Gakpo. The 23-year-old enjoyed a sensational World Cup with the Netherlands, scoring three goals as they exited in the quarter-finals to Argentina. Meanwhile, boasting 13 goals from 24 games for PSV Eindhoven this season, off the back of a 21-goal campaign last year, and the Dutch giants, who were fortunate to keep hold of him in the summer, are resigned to losing his services in the not too distant future.
Recent reports have suggested that Reds assistant manager Pep Lijnders is a big fan of his compatriot, while PSV are said to be demanding £43m for his services. While that is not extortionate, it still seems a little excessive for Liverpool to enter such negotiations for a left-winger who is unlikely to be first-choice once Diaz and Jota return.
Away from Gakpo, maybe the Reds could sign a versatile, rumoured long-term target instead? A player who would bolster their attacking ranks and complement their current options across the board. Mohamed Kudus of Ajax would seemingly tick such boxes, and actually fill a vacancy on the right as understudy to Salah, but has limited experience on the left-hand side so perhaps not the ideal candidate to cover for Liverpool’s injured pair.
Joao Felix will reportedly move on from Atletico Madrid in January and has been linked with a move to Anfield in the past. He is capable of playing anywhere across a front three or behind a main striker too, while the 23-year-old proved his credentials on the left while stationed there for Portugal during the World Cup.
While there is a slim chance the Portuguese could be allowed to leave Atletico on loan, a permanent transfer is more realistic. Having cost the Spanish outfit £114m when joining from Benfica back in 2019, he will not come cheap. As a result, the Reds could find themselves priced out of any fight for his signature.
As a result, perhaps a stop gap is best. A proven attacking option who would be capable of starting and delivering goals, but also be suited to fill the Origi/Minamino role on the bench once Diaz and Jota returns. One former Liverpool target does come to mind.
Memphis Depay joined Barcelona on a free transfer from Lyon last summer, but the Catalans’ financial woes had led to them looking to offload the Netherlands international midway through his two-year deal. Having initially wanted €20m for the forward’s services in the summer, the La Liga outfit were reportedly in negotiations with his lawyer to cancel his contract and make the 28-year-old a free agent.
The Dutchman would end up staying put, however, but only made three appearances during the first half of the season as he scored one goal. Troubled by a thigh injury, he would return to feature for the Netherlands at the World Cup at least, scoring one goal as he featured in all five games and proved his fitness enough to be first-choice come the knockout stages.
Depay actually impressed for Barcelona last year also, registering 13 goals from 38 appearances. But with the Catalans signing Raphinha, Robert Lewandowski, Jules Kounde, Franck Kessie and Andreas Christensen in the summer, they still need to offload players with the Dutchman a likely casualty, having already fallen down the pecking order as a result of such business.
He has loosely been linked with Liverpool repeatedly over the years, despite spending a disappointing 18 months with Manchester United after moving to Old Trafford in a £25m move from PSV Eindhoven in 2015. Yet the Reds held talks with the Dutch giants themselves prior to his move to Old Trafford.
Willing to meet PSV’s £25m asking-price, Liverpool made Depay a contract offer, though then-boss Brendan Rodgers was evasive when speaking about the club’s interest in April 2015.
“I can’t confirm either way - you know me, in terms of speculation of players,” he said. “The kid is a very talented player, of course. But I wouldn’t like to confirm either way. It’s clear we need the goal threat for next year.
“There’s going to be a whole raft of players that I’m sure will be looked at, then will be up to the club if they’re affordable and if they’re available. We’ve identified that [a striker] as a priority. We’ll have to see availability first, and then take it from there.”
While Rodgers was not forthcoming about his side’s interest, PSV sporting director Marcel Brands suggested Liverpool were in talks and ahead of United in the race for the then 21-year-old’s signature.
“PSG and Liverpool are indeed a step ahead of Manchester United in the race to sign Memphis,” he claimed in May 2015. “United have only informed us about their interest. The list of interested clubs has grown in recent weeks. But Bayern Munich are not among the teams that want to sign him.
“It’s only logical that there is a lot of movement around Memphis. He is still a young player, but is already hugely efficient. He should be proud of that. There isn’t usually a lot of movement in the transfer market at this stage of the season. It’s an exception that so many clubs have already shown an interest in Memphis. That only illustrates that he’s on the right track.”
Yet less than a week later and Liverpool did not land Depay with a £25m move to Manchester United agreed instead. So how did the Reds miss out on the forward, who was keen on a move to the Premier League, when a deal had seemed so close?
The Athletic reported that an injury to Daniel Sturridge ultimately saw Liverpool put the deal on hold as they were forced to switch targets. Despite willing to make Depay one of their highest earners, the Reds asked him to wait to complete a deal as they looked to sign Christian Benteke instead, with Rodgers’ need for a new striker being the move’s undoing.
Confused by Liverpool’s approach, having not been told how long to wait, the forward apparently pulled the plug on the move and ultimately signed for United instead, with the Reds later signing Firmino as an alternative. Considering the Brazilian’s success at Anfield, it’s hardly a decision club bosses will regret in hindsight.
Ironically Firmino ended up replacing Benteke as the Reds’ main striker following the arrival of Klopp in October 2015, and, with 107 goals from 348 appearances to date, has won every major honour going with Liverpool. Yet there has always remained an attraction to Depay from Kopites as they wondered what could have been.
Having ultimately failed at United, the Dutchman rebuilt his career in France with Lyon, scoring 76 goals from 178 appearances during four-and-a-half years at the club. Twice boasting over 20-goal seasons, perhaps it was the temptation for Depay to replicate such form at Anfield and rub salt in Red Devils wounds that really appealed to fans. Perhaps he could be tempted at proving himself back in the Premier League and by making a point to his former club also.
For much of his time in Ligue 1, he did find himself linked with a move to Liverpool with his close friendship with compatriot Gini Wijnaldum often cited as one possible hint a deal could happen. Indeed, whenever they two were pictured together, Reds fans weren’t too far behind urging Depay to join his international team-mate at Anfield.
Yet with Wijnaldum no longer a Liverpool player, it feels that ship has sailed. Considering the Reds made no move for his services when he was available on a Bosman transfer last year, it seems unlikely they would act differently now.
But could their injuries force their hand to make such an opportunistic swoop? With just six months left on his contract, the Dutchman will be available for free in the summer. As a result, Barcelona could be quite open to selling him for a cut-price fee, loaning him out or even trying again to cancel his contract just to get him off the Camp Nou books.
As a result, there is an opportunity to sign a player who has proven himself as a prolific goalscorer in Spain, France and the Netherlands in a bargain deal in January. No doubt hungry to make the Catalans regret any exit and prove himself at another top club, he would be an attractive option, given he is also still only 28 and is capable of playing anywhere in a front three, including on that open left wing, as well as behind a main striker.
There’s also the possibility of him being available as a short-term signing, signed to cover for Diaz and Jota with the ball in his court to impress enough to earn a longer contract. Liverpool have made such moves before when signing Ozan Kabak and Arthur Melo on loan, giving them time to reassess their options in the following window against heftier investment.
It will be a surprise if Depay doesn’t leave Barcelona in January, with his availability making him a proven bargain for whichever club lands his signature. While there is currently no suggestion that Liverpool would enter such a conversation, if they were to be tempted it could prove to be a very shrewd move as they look to kickstart their season despite their depleted options.
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