According to reports from Spain, Liverpool are readying an offer for one player who Arne Slot would dearly love to have at Anfield, and he’s likely to be affordable for the Reds.
Although Ryan Gravenberch and Alexis Mac Allister have formed an imperious partnership at the base of midfield, both Paul Scholes and Jamie Carragher believe that the Premier League champions need additional depth for that duo in case of a lengthy injury.
Their options in that part of the squad could be boosted from within if, as some journalists have hinted, Stefan Bajcetic makes the most of the opportunities he’s set to be afforded in pre-season, although they also appear to be on the lookout for recruits from elsewhere.
Liverpool preparing offer for Angelo Stiller
On Thursday afternoon, Spanish outlet Fichajes reported that Liverpool are prepared to offer €60m (£51m) for Stuttgart midfielder Angelo Stiller, with Slot and the Reds’ recruitment staff viewing him as ‘an ideal candidate to add balance and clarity’ in that area of the pitch.
The aforementioned figure is considered to be ‘manageable’ for the Merseyside giants and could yet sway the Bundesliga outfit, who are understandably reluctant to sell.
The LFC head coach has ‘expressed his enthusiasm to the board’ about the prospect of adding the 24-year-old to the Premier League winners’ squad.
What qualities could Stiller bring to Liverpool?
Even though Stiller’s release clause at Stuttgart is reportedly a modest €36m (£30.2m) according to Bundesliga insider Christian Falk, it doesn’t come into effect until next year. In any case, it appears that Die Schwaben won’t countenance selling him unless a substantially higher amount is offered.
While the 24-year-old plays primarily as a defensive midfielder, he’s much more of a creator than a destroyer, as evidenced by statistics from FBref comparing him with positional peers in Europe’s five main leagues over the past 12 months.
In that time, the German ranks among the top 3% of midfielders for passes attempted and progressive passes made per 90 minutes. Additionally, he’s in the top 9% for shot-creating actions per game (3.88) and the top 11% for assists per match (0.2), while he actually ranks quite lowly for defensive metrics such as tackles and interceptions.
Stiller could bring some useful qualities to Liverpool’s midfield, but the question for Slot and Richard Hughes to answer is whether his reported asking price of £51m would represent a smart investment when analysing his pros and cons, and when considering the other transfer business that the Reds will be seeking to pull off.
If these reports are true, though, we can surely assume that the Anfield powerbrokers have done their due diligence on the 24-year-old and won’t be putting any offers on the table unless they’re convinced he’s the right man to help take LFC to the next level.
