There was a pessimistic mood amongst many Liverpool fans this week, ahead of the side’s Champions League game against in-form Napoli. The Reds put their limp recent displays behind them and defied many pre-match predictions, winning the game 2-0.
Off the pitch, the long-running transfer saga surrounding Jude Bellingham took another turn, with German magazine Sport Bild splashing the young Englishman across their front cover and reporting that Jürgen Klopp and Liverpool’s owners have agreed to ‘go all-in’ on signing him.
On the latest episode of our Journo Insight Show, we asked goal.com’s Neil Jones for his opinion on the Sport Bild piece.
Neil said:
“Jan Åge Fjørtoft, he brought it to everyone’s attention: ‘€100 million!’ – that kind of thing. There’s no secret, Liverpool want Jude Bellingham and would like to sign him. The question has always been the finances and the competition. You get excited – Sport Bild are saying Liverpool are going to sign Jude Bellingham, but Marca are saying, ‘Real Madrid are going to sign Jude Bellingham’. I’m pretty sure at some point someone will say, ‘Paris Saint Germain are going to sign Jude Bellingham. If Manchester City and Chelsea aren’t linked strongly at some point I’ll be amazed. It wouldn’t amaze me if Bayern Munich are linked, given their history of signing players from Bundesliga rivals. So, there are going to be a lot of these kinds of stories
Dortmund will demand at least €150 million. I mean, if he goes and smashes the World Cup and leads England to glory or even the latter stages, they probably can look at that. There’s obviously a chance Liverpool sign him, and that’s the best thing you can say at this point. Jürgen says it quite a lot: ‘All I need is a chance and we’ll give it a try.’ But I think Liverpool are at the very least in the pack chasing him.”
Redmen Reacts
There has been a decline in positivity amongst the Reds fanbase over the Bellingham links, which has gone hand in hand with their on-pitch decline this season. It is true to say that in a straight fight, Liverpool will always be outgunned by the success and near-infinite financial muscle of Manchester City or PSG, or the pure footballing heritage (and financial resources) of Real Madrid. Jürgen Klopp and his team will have to sell the club to Jude Bellingham in a different way – the incredible scenes at the victory parades in 2005 and 2019, the rare alchemy that exists between the team and the fans at games like the 4-0 victory over Barcelona and in Istanbul. Wherever Jude chooses to go, he will be handsomely paid. If he wants to retire with the most medals possible, his best destination will be 25 miles east along the M62. Liverpool’s recent slogan is ‘This Means More’. There is a kernel of truth at its heart – does he want to be merely the latest in a long line of expensively assembled midfield talent at the Etihad? Or could he end up something more at Anfield, something beyond money and beyond titles?
TO HEAR MORE FROM NEIL ON TOPICS SUCH AS THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE DRAW, CLICK HERE
