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Liverpool have started the summer on the front foot, as the club responded to their lacklustre title defence by replacing Arne Slot with Andoni Iraola in the Anfield dugout.
That was the first major move of what could be another busy offseason on Merseyside, following last year’s £450million spending spree, which saw a host of new faces arrive, only for Slot to struggle to get his new recruits glowing.
One of Iraola’s first tasks at Liverpool will be to plan for life after a number of key stars whose exits have already been confirmed, with Mo Salah, Andy Robertson and Ibrahima Konate all having said their farewells at the end of the season.
Yan Diomande’s come-and-get-me plea
Given the impact that Salah has had at Anfield since his 2017 arrival, replacing the iconic Egyptian will be a priority, with a host of players being linked with the Reds in recent weeks and months.
One player who has regularly popped up in the gossip columns last season was RB Leipzig’s teenage winger Yan Diomande, who has enjoyed a productive first season in the Bundesliga, netting 12 times and providing nine assists in 33 appearances.
But as Liverpool look to get moving in the summer transfer market, the 19-year-old seemingly has his heart set on one of the Reds’ European rivals.
“Paris Saint-Germain is a team I’ve loved since I was a child. My father supports Paris Saint-Germain, and it’s a team I admire as a football fan”, he told L’Equipe.
“It would be a pleasure for me to come and play here with one of the biggest clubs. It’s always a pleasure to come here because, with French being spoken, I think adapting wouldn’t be difficult. But why not?”.
“I don’t think I’m looking ahead to the future or focusing on anything else. As I’ve said, I remain focused on the World Cup. After that, the clubs will sort things out between themselves and we’ll see what happens next.”
Diomande’s comments come after he earned the Bundesliga Rookie of the Season award, as Leipzig brace themselves for a summer of interest in the Ivory Coast international.
The winger, who joined Leipzig from the Spanish side when his €20million release clause was activated last summer, is now valued at €90million by Transfermarkt, although ESPN report that the German side have placed an opening valuation of €130million on Diomande.
Liverpool are believed that have made contact with Leipzig over a potential move, while the likes of both Manchester sides, Bayern Munich, plus PSG have all been linked with him.
In FourFourTwo’s view, it is clear to see why Liverpool have identified the hugely talented Diomande as a potential Salah replacement, but given their outlay last summer and the other areas of the squad they need to address, going up against some of Europe’s best sides in a bidding war may not be the best way forward for Iraola’s side this summer.
