Liverpool’s EURO rivals roundup: Man City and PSG both love the look of a starlet being watched at Anfield, while Sadio Mane may have come to terms with a Cristiano Ronaldo link.
Liverpool may soon have enough former players in Saudi Arabia to add their own Legends side to the league. Jordan Henderson and Fabinho are both completing transfers and they would join Roberto Firmino and Steven Gerrard in the move.
Sadio Mane could soon complete the five-man squad and he is rumored to have agreed a deal to join Cristiano Ronaldo at Al-Nassr. He had a difficult season after leaving Liverpool for Bayern Munich last year, but he reportedly tried to stay and fight for his place in the team. But while the transfers of Mane, Gerrard and even Firmino – who would always start on a free transfer – have little relevance to Liverpool’s plans, the transfers of Henderson and Fabinho have put a spoke in the works for the rest of the summer. And the Reds aren’t the only European side that could fall behind.
At Manchester City, Riyad Mahrez has been enticed by Saudi overtures, with a fee of $39m (£30m/€35m) agreed with Al Ahli. Pep Guardiola has started drawing up a list of possible replacements.
This could point him towards a young starlet who is admired by both Liverpool and PSG. Manchester City scouts were “impressed from start to finish”.
Sadio Mané to join Cristiano Ronaldo at Al-Nassr
According to L’Equipe, Mané has agreed to join Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr in the latest episode of the great Saudi exodus. Yesterday The Athletic broke the news of the talks, but the French outlet now claims a deal has been reached.
Although the transfer is not yet complete, Mané has “given his agreement in principle”. It would bring an abrupt end to his difficult spell at Bayern Munich after just one injury-related season
Thomas Tuchel appeared to have hinted earlier in the month that Mane could still leave despite the player’s propensity to fight for his place.
Liverpool.com says: Another day, another disappointment. Mane seemed like the type to resist Saudi overtures and prove he still belonged at a high level in Europe, but the money seems to have spoken again.
No doubt Liverpool’s growing core of legends will increase interest in the Saudi league as the season progresses, with clips circulating on social media just as they did around Ronaldo. This, of course, is part of the plan.
Bradley Barcola is a favorite of PSG, Man City, and Liverpool.
According to 90MIN, Manchester City may try to sign Lyon’s young Bradley Barcola to replace Mahrez. The 20-year-old only made his official debut in January, but he quickly rose to prominence, finishing the season with seven goals and 10 assists across all competitions.
Liverpool is ‘keeping tabs’ on Barcola, according to a Fabrizio Romano report from April (via Get French Football News). Le Parisien recently reported that PSG continues to monitor the situation.
Barcola appears to be a promising talent, but the player has admitted that he needs one more year at Lyon to “confirm” his development, according to Liverpool Dot Com.
While PSG has a history of snatching up the best French talent, this stance may change if Manchester City decides to push for him as a replacement for Mahrez. However, Liverpool might be hoping he bides his time until next summer, which may be the time to begin seriously searching for a Mohamed Salah replacement.
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Liverpool could give the 19-year-old, who has already completed his dream transfer, a chance
Liverpool young winger Melkamu Frauendorf is part of Jurgen Klopp’s 32-man pre-season squad that traveled to Baden-Wuerttemberg for a summer training camp
Melkamu Frauendorf is hoping to leave a lasting impression at Liverpool’s training camp in Germany.
The 19-year-old was signed by Hoffenheim in 2020, before signing professional contracts with Liverpool a year later. In his debut season with the Reds, the versatile attacking midfielder shone for the under-18s, scoring seven goals, including in the FA Youth Cup final.
An even more impressive season followed, resulting in the then 17-year-old Frauendorf making his first team debut in January 2022 as a substitute against Shrewsbury Town in the FA Cup. He earned his first start for Liverpool in a Carabao Cup win against Derby County last season. Last season, Frauendorf showed his versatility and was used across the board. The Germany U19 international has been deployed as both a left and right forward, and also successfully broke into the forward position for the U21 side, scoring twice and getting one assist in three games.
Frauendorf had attracted interest from other clubs, before signing for Liverpool, and was aware of interest from the Reds for a year before deciding to move to Merseyside. The teenager began imagining playing for the club in 2017 as he watched from the stands Trent Alexander-Arnold score his first goal for Liverpool against Hoffenheim in a Champions League play-off match.
“I dreamed of playing for Liverpool and going to England, to play at Anfield,” he recalled. “I dreamed about it.”
Full name: Melkamu Benjamin Daniel Frauendorf
Date of birth: January 12, 2004
Place of birth: Kembata, Ethiopia
Position: Right winger, Left winger, Centre-forward
Career History: Frauendorf came off the bench on his Liverpool debut against Shrewsbury Town in January 2022 and made his first starting XI for the Reds against Derby County in September 2022. He hopes to feature in more matchday squads the next season.
