The Premier League is back after a third international break in as many months. Typically, this would be a moment of great excitement for Liverpool, but recent results have laced the build-up to the next phase of action with anxiety.
But Arne Slot’s side are a distance short of emulating last season’s smooth-sailing Premier League champions. Well adrift of first-placed Arsenal after losing five of six top-flight fixtures, there can be no doubting that this is a crisis for the Reds.
But Liverpool have weathered storms before, and it certainly feels like a matter of when, not if, Liverpool will click together after a summer of sweeping change.
Slot has played down chatter of a winter bid for a centre-back. Giovanni Leoni was signed for around £27m this summer, but the former Parma defender is out for the campaign after suffering an ACL injury on his debut. Liverpool missed out on Marc Guehi on transfer deadline day.
Liverpool do appear set to complete some winter business, though, with rumours regarding Antoine Semenyo’s future at Bournemouth gathering speed.
Liverpool planning for winter business
It has been confirmed by the powers that be on the transfer scene that Liverpool are interested in Semenyo, whose £65m release clause with the Cherries becomes active during the January transfer market.
Fabrizio Romano has confirmed FSG’s vested interest, but Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur are among the suitors too.
This would be a significant deal for the Reds, who failed to seal a direct Luis Diaz replacement this summer, but sporting director Richard Hughes’ eye falls over more than one position, with another Premier League sensation earmarked ahead of 2026.
Indeed, according to a recent report from The Times, Liverpool have entered the race for Nottingham Forest’s Elliot Anderson, though they face stiff competition from Manchester United and Newcastle United.
The Tricky Trees don’t want to part with their prized player, though Evangelos Marinakis concedes that keeping him for the long run will prove difficult. Therefore, he has been listed at £100m.
Why FSG want to sign Elliot Anderson
Liverpool have a robust crop of midfield players, but Anderson’s complete and combative style suggests he might be the missing link in an engine room lacking its typical efficiency.
Forged in Newcastle’s academy, Anderson was sold to Forest in 2024 as Eddie Howe sought to ease his side’s financial worries. It would have been a rueful transfer for the 23-year-old, though he has only gone from strength to strength since the switch, and now he is a fully-fledged England international, regarded as one of the finest midfielders in his homeland.
Instrumental for Forest since the start of last season, Anderson really is the full package, strong in the duel, utterly tireless and a developing playmaker, his range of passing growing by the month.
In fact, Anderson is among the best across a number of statistical metrics this season. As per FBref, he ranks among the top 1% of Premier League midfielders for passes attempted, progressive passes and ball recoveries, the top 5% for shot-creating actions, the top 3% for successful take-ons, and the top 7% for crosses completed per 90. Quite the jack of all trades.
He’s an all-rounder, alright, a real force in the middle of the park. In this, he is an echo of Liverpool’s Alexis Mac Allister, and one who is far outstripping the Argentine at the moment – and that’s not up for debate, sadly.
Matches (starts)
11 (11)
10 (9)
Goals
1
0
Assists
1
2
Touches*
94.4
45.1
Accurate passes*
62.1 (87%)
30.3 (86%)
Chances created*
1.4
0.9
Dribbles*
1.3
0.0
Ball recoveries*
8.4
2.9
Tackles + interceptions*
3.5
1.6
Duels (won)*
7.5 (55%)
2.5 (45%)
The sum of Liverpool’s plight this season is greater than its individual parts, but it is hardly helping that Slot’s trusted midfield lieutenant is flattering to deceive.
While adding Semenyo to the ranks would be a positive move for Slot’s side, you have to wonder whether Liverpool need to complete such a deal. After all, the reason behind opting against a direct Diaz replacement was to ensure Rio Ngumoha has a clear pathway to consistent first-team minutes.
With Cody Gakpo also in the mix, it feels like a deal for Semenyo could run counter to that previously outlined ambition. Of course, Mohamed Salah is not getting any younger, and Semenyo is equally as dangerous on the right as he is coming off the left flank, but Semenyo would struggle to displace the Egyptian legend from the outset, and Salah is contracted to Anfield until the end of next season.
A lot for Hughes and Slot to ponder. With the need for a central defender also intense, Liverpool may struggle to pull off deals for all of these aforementioned players.
They might have to be savvy about it, and while Anderson would be the most expensive of the lot, he would also mark the most impactful addition, described as a “superstar in the making” by journalist Louis Wheeldon, with the potential to become a leading man in the Premier League over the next decade.
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