On the TNT Sports panel for Liverpool’s Champions League clash against PSV Eindhoven on Wednesday, Steven Gerrard was hesitant to say that Arne Slot’s side are in a crisis.
But after being dispatched 4-1 by Peter Bosz’s Dutchmen, it’s difficult to argue anything even bordering the contrary. That was Liverpool’s ninth defeat in 12 matches across all competitions, and the crisis – yes, crisis – is deepening.
The most concerning thing is that there is so much talent in this side. Liverpool are chock-full of elite talent. But synergy and belief are in short supply at Anfield.
Slot is steadfast in his belief that he can craft an exit from this rut with the tools at his disposal, but sporting director Richard Hughes is gearing up for a January signing nonetheless.
Who Liverpool need to sign in January
There has been plenty of chatter relating to the need for a centre-back at Liverpool. It’s true. Despite Real Madrid ending their interest in Ibrahima Konate, the Reds are still short at the back after missing out on Marc Guehi last summer.
However, Slot has suggested that Liverpool have another area of the field on their mind, his frontline so imbalanced this season.
As per i News, Liverpool are leading the race for Bournemouth forward Antoine Semenyo, following initial enquiries, with David Ornstein previously confirming the Reds’ interest and that the Ghanaian winger has a £65m release clause in his contract that becomes active this January.
Semenyo is also courting intrigue from the likes of Manchester City, but Liverpool feel they have a good chance of bringing him over to Anfield after opting against signing a like-for-like Luis Diaz replacement this summer.
What Semenyo would offer Liverpool
It is promising to note the incremental progress Semenyo has made since joining Bournemouth from Bristol City in the Championship for about £10.5m in January 2023.
Last season, he was lauded for going to “another level” in the Premier League by teammate Lewis Cook, growing into his skin under the tutelage of Andoni Iraola, instrumental in the Cherries’ 56-point finish.
Ferocious and powerful, he has only gotten better since the summer, notching six goals and three assists across his first 11 matches in the division this term.
There is far more to the 25-year-old’s game than just goal contributions, but he has still managed to post more than all of his teammates at the Vitality Stadium.
Antoine Semenyo
27 + 13
40
Justin Kluivert
23 + 11
34
Dominic Solanke
21 + 4
25
Marcus Tavernier
10 + 11
21
Evanilson
13 + 6
19
His talismanic qualities and “world-class” form, as said by another teammate, Justin Kluivert, underscore Semenyo’s suitability at Liverpool, especially as his pace and power and burgeoning prolificacy has led Reds analyst Josh Williams to dub him “the closest you’ll find to peak Mane right now”.
This, and Semenyo’s big-game ability, suggests he could be one of the Anfield side’s finest signings in a long time, perhaps even since £60m was paid to RB Leipzig to bring Dominik Szoboszlai over from Germany.
Szoboszlai has had his ups and downs in a Liverpool shirt, but has bloomed into a superstar of a midfielder this season, stepping up and becoming a leader of men while applying his tireless energy and sharp technical skills at a time when ailing Liverpool desperately need them.
Liverpool’s Hungarian general is a masterful midfielder, cut and dry as the outfit’s best player this term; it is not even close.
While he is a wholly different type of player from Semenyo, they share an athletic likeness and have both established themselves as leading lights at their respective sides.
If Liverpool can both add balance to their side while infusing the squad with more in-form ability than has been on show this year, it will only be a good thing as Slot and Szoboszlai and the rest fight to steer the club out of the ditch they have slipped into.
Such a signing could be a catalyst for change, and at a comparatively shrewd £65m figure, Semenyo might just prove to be one of Liverpool’s best signings in a number of years.
Better than Isak: Liverpool join race for "one of the best RWs in the world"
Arne Slot’s Liverpool tenure is crumbling before him, and FSG are considering changes.
ByAngus Sinclair