???️ Keita Is Finally A Liverpool Man

With Liverpool fans going into a frenzy yesterday over the exciting news of Naby Keita signing a pre-contract for next season there is definitely a feeling around Anfield that the future is looking very bright indeed. However with the fans a little confused about the ins and outs of the deal, I thought I would provide some clarity and give my opinion on what is to be Liverpool’ record signing. Who it is Naby Keita? Naby Keita is a 22-year-old Guinea International who plays for RB Leipzig in Germany. The right-footed central midfielder played a key part in the German club finishing second in the Bundesliga last season where he scored eight goals and got seven assists. What will he bring to Liverpool? Keita is a player with bag loads of energy and pace. A box to box midfielder who can get up and down the pitch at a rate of knots, Naby also has an eye for a tackle, notching up 80 tackles and 81 interceptions last time out. He can take people on as well, his dribbles per game ratio was second in the Bundesliga behind Borussia Dortmund’s Ousmane Dembele last season. We know from last season that Liverpool lacked any real pace in the centre of the midfield and this is an issue that Klopp wanted to address in the summer. Klopp doesn’t just want to have pace on the wings but he also wants someone in the centre of the pitch who can become the engine that Liverpool need. After seeing Keita’s performances last season I’m very hopeful that he could show these attributes when he becomes a Liverpool player next season. Why wait until next season? This is where the deal becomes a bit complicated. Ketia has an £48 million release clause in his contract, however this clause is only active after this current season is over. We know that RB Leipzig and Red Bull have been very firm and resisted all of Liverpool’s bids this summer, stating the fact that they had no intentions of selling Keita for any price this summer. This is where I think Liverpool have been very smart, we could have quite easily waited until next season and put a bid in next summer that would have activated his clause. However the danger with that is if Ketia has another amazing season there are going to be other clubs sniffing around for his signature. So basically what Liverpool have done is activated his release clause now for next season. Because of this Leipzig had no choice but to accept the bid and that allowed us to talk to Ketia, this was the only way we were going to get the deal over the line. I have to mention FSG in all of this because I think some Liverpool fans are very quick to slag them off when they make a mistake or do something we’re not happy with, however this bit of business is pure genius on their parts and they have to get a round of applause in my books. Is this a replacement for Coutinho? I don’t think Ketia is a like-for-like replacement for Coutinho as I think they are two very different players. Ketia is more of a box to box midfielder, he has pure energy and power and these are his main strengths, where as Coutinho likes to operate more in the final third, he is comfortable in small spaces and he is able to thread the ball through an eye of a needle. However, unfortunately I don’t think we will get to see these two brilliant players playing in the same Liverpool team, whist I’m confident Liverpool will keep Coutinho this season I don’t believe we will be able to hang onto him next season, in fact much like the Ketia deal, I suspect Liverpool already have a verbal agreement with Coutinho and Barcelona that they will probably let him go at the end of the season. Will Ketia be the next Steven Gerrard? This is a question I have heard a lot of our supporters ask this summer and in my opinion is quite a dangerous question to be asking at this point in Ketia career. We already know that he’s coming to Liverpool for a club record fee, on top of that he’s said that he wants to wear the number eight shirts, this is a brave decision for him, very brave. I do admire his bravery but also I think Liverpool fans need to be very careful not to put too much on his shoulders earlier on and calling him “the next Steven Gerrard” already might be a step too far. We want Ketia to flourish at Liverpool and live up to his full potential , but by putting a big Gerrard side weights around his neck the minute he walks through the door at Melwood could possibly mean him not being able to live up to the expectation that Liverpool fans have placed on him already. We need to understand as well that there is probably never going to be another Steven Gerrard, and what I mean by that is he didn’t just have world-class quality flowing through his veins but he was also a local lad and a fan of the club from a very young age. It is highly unlikely that we are ever going to see these two components merged together in one single player again. This being said I think Ketia could become a very good player for Liverpool and could be a key figure in helping us challenge from silverware next season onwards. He could play Steven Gerrard role in that midfield being the engine and driving force behind the team. I hope I have clarified some of the key points in this big money deal. I for one am very excited to see what Naby Ketia can bring to Liverpool. So all that’s left for me to say is, and I think I speak for the majority of Liverpool fans here, welcome to Liverpool Son.   Imraan Adam   @iamadam786