Liverpool could reportedly enter the transfer race for a coveted Ligue 1 winger this summer.
The Reds have been strongly linked with one player in particular from the French top flight, with speculation over Rayan Cherki’s future rife amid his exit from Lyon, but he’s not the only player from that division who appears to be on the radar of Richard Hughes.
Liverpool could enter Maghnes Akliouche transfer race
According to L’Equipe, the Anfield hierarchy have made contact regarding a potential move for Maghnes Akliouche, who’s also wanted by several other Premier League clubs.
Nottingham Forest have shown a readiness to make concrete steps towards executing a deal for the Monaco forward, while Tottenham Hotspur have also opened talks.
Paris Saint-Germain are interested in signing the 23-year-old for €50m (£42.2m), but any move to the Ligue 1 champions is at an impasse as his current employers value him at €60m (£50.6m). Also, Luis Enrique’s side are set to keep their powder dry until after the Champions League final on 31 May.
Monaco CEO Thiago Scuro has said that the club have ‘big expectations’ for Akliouche, adding that ‘not many’ teams would realistically be able to afford what they want for him.
Akliouche seems ‘gifted’ but his goal record is a concern
The France under-21 international didn’t exactly shoot the lights out for Monaco this season, with seven goals and 12 assists in 43 appearances – not really the sort of figures which’d have him breathing down Mo Salah’s neck for a start at Liverpool.
However, a detailed analysis from Liam Scahill for Breaking The Lines describes him as a ‘gifted youngster’ who specalises in making ‘undetected late runs into space’ and boasts ‘impeccable technique and ‘wise game intelligence’ for a player of his age.
Figures from FBref highlight Akliouche as a winger who works hard out of possession, ranking among the top 16% of positional peers in Europe’s five main leagues over the past year for tackles and interceptions per game, and he’s also in the 89th percentile for progressive passes per 90 minutes with 6.17.
His underlying metrics seem decent, but it’s hard to escape the sparse goal tally, which is ultimately the primary statistic on which a forward player will be judged.
This feels more like a potentially opportunistic signing to monitor than one to go all-out for, but let’s see if anything further comes of Liverpool’s initial contact for the Monaco attacker.
