Liverpool could see one long-standing transfer target move to Saudi Arabia instead, according to a report which has emerged on Saturday morning.
For a number of months now, the Reds have been linked on and off with Mohammed Kudus, whose career could be approaching a major crossroads.
According to Graeme Bailey for TBR Football, West Ham are preparing to part with the 24-year-old this summer, with the Ghanaian among several players who are likely to leave amid a planned overhaul of Graham Potter’s squad at the London Stadium.
Liverpool-linked Kudus now wanted by several Saudi clubs
The report mentions that Liverpool have held a ‘long-standing’ interest in the Irons attacker, but it appears that he could be set to depart the Premier League altogether.
Several Saudi Pro League clubs are understood to be preparing a formal approach for Kudus, who they view as a prospective marquee addition, and they believe that the Hammers could be willing to sell the attacker for £65m-£70m even though his release clause stands at £85m.
Kudus wouldn’t be an upgrade on Liverpool’s current attacking options
Slot was full of praise for the West Ham attacker after their narrow defeat at Anfield last month, labelling him ‘incredible’ (Sky Sports), but Liverpool may need to move quickly if they’re serious about signing the Ghana international.
The 24-year-old is capable of playing anywhere across the forward line and has troubled the Reds before, scoring a tremendous goal against us in his Ajax days. However, his goal return for this season is paltry, with only four in 30 appearances (and one since Christmas).
Even with Darwin Nunez potentially leaving this summer, it’s not as if we’re struggling for depth in attack, and we’d rather see the head coach keep faith in Federico Chiesa than spending a sizeable transfer fee on an attacker whose output this term leaves a lot to be desired.
At best, Kudus would be a backup option up top for Liverpool, and he’d have to improve significantly in order to jump ahead of the likes of Cody Gakpo and Diogo Jota in the pecking order.
The Ghanaian can be a handful but we don’t see him as a player who’d greatly improve the Reds’ squad. We believe that Richard Hughes could find better value elsewhere when it comes to looking for additions to Slot’s forward line.
