Incoming Liverpool boss Arne Slot holds the cards when it comes to signing one of his former players
(Image credit: Getty Images)
Atalanta are willing to hold out on any future Juventus bids for midfielder Teun Koopmeiners and wait to see if any English clubs come sniffing for his services at a much higher price – most particularly, Liverpool.
Slot knows fellow Dutchman Koopmeiners very well from their time together at AZ Alkmaar, with the goalscoring midfielder playing a key role in helping the club mount an unlikely title challenge in 2019/20 before the Eredivisie season was left unfinished thanks to the coronavirus pandemic.
Koopmeiners claimed 16 goals and three assists in 42 appearances in all competitions that season, wearing the captain’s armband throughout despite being just 21 years old at the time.
That earned the Dutch international a move to Atalanta in 2021, by which time Slot had already left the club to take up the reins at Feyenoord – and it seems that the pair could be reunited at Anfield, if reports are to be believed.
Atalanta are playing a clever game with Teun Koopmeiners' interest (Image credit: Getty Images)
As relayed by Sport Witness, Italian football journalist Emanuele Corazzi believes Liverpool hold another key advantage over Juve if they bid for Koopmeiners’ services, with Atalanta having already shown themselves to be willing to be patient about selling their better players.
The best features, fun and footballing quizzes, straight to your inbox every week.
“Atalanta with Koopmeiners are doing exactly what they did with Hojlund,” Corazzi explained. “That is ‘Juve are interested, but let’s wait, let’s see what offers arrive’, because many English giants – Liverpool, above all – are so interested in Koopmeiners.
Rasmus Hojlund joined Manchester United from Atalanta in similar circumstances to how Koopmeiners could move to Liverpool (Image credit: Will Palmer/Sportsphoto/Allstar via Getty Images)
“Last year Hojlund had so many offers, Atalanta waited and then sold him to United for a huge sum. It’s a bit more difficult for Koopmeiners to go to Juventus should Liverpool come along.”
Liverpool got the chance to see Koopmeiners up close and personal last month as he played the full 90 minutes in both legs of Atalanta’s aggregate victory in the Europa League quarter-finals.
Atalanta have since gone on to dispense with Marseille in the semis, setting up a meeting with Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen in the final next Wednesday evening.
Steven Chicken has been working as a football writer since 2009, taking in stints with Football365 and the Huddersfield Examiner. Steven still covers Huddersfield Town home and away for his own publication, WeAreTerriers.com. Steven is a two-time nominee for Regional Journalist of the Year at the prestigious British Sports Journalism Awards, making the shortlist in 2020 and 2023.
