DONE DEAL : Jurgen Klopp secures Liverpool’s latest signing, a talented playmaker earning £117k per week, surpassing the abilities of Szoboszlai and Mac Allister.

The Reds have a long-standing interest in the “magical” Bundesliga midfielder.

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Liverpool were left frustrated on Sunday as they failed to come away with all three points from their clash with Manchester United at Anfield.

Jurgen Klopp’s men were held to a 0-0 draw on Merseyside as they failed to beat the imperious Andre Onana, who was in place behind a low block of white shirts.

The Reds had a staggering 34 shots throughout the game but only accumulated an Expected Goals (xG) of 2.38 and managed eight shots on target.

This means that the average xG value of their shots was 0.07 and this shows that they took far too many low-value, low-probability, efforts that had little chance of finding the back of the net.

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The lack of creativity in midfield for Liverpool played a part in this as the starting trio of Wataru Endo, Dominik Szoboszlai, and Ryan Gravenberch produced one key pass (chance created) and zero ‘big chances’ created.

Cody Gakpo, Harvey Elliott, and Curtis Jones all came on to bolster the midfield and attack but only managed one key pass between them.

Klopp could add some more creativity to his squad, particularly his options in the middle of the park, with a swoop for reported target Julian Brandt.

Liverpool transfer news – Julian Brandt
The versatile Borussia Dortmund attacking midfielder has been linked with a possible move to the Premier League and could be a fantastic addition to the German head coach’s squad.

Earlier this month, The Mirror reported that Liverpool have a long-standing interest in the Germany international as Klopp is said to be an admirer of his talents.

The outlet also claimed that the ex-Dortmund bos wanted to sign Brandt for the Reds back in the summer of 2017 before the club eventually opted to go for Mohamed Salah instead, albeit they have turned out to be very different players in style.

Fellow Premier League sides Arsenal and Newcastle United are also said to be keen on the former Bayer Leverkusen star as they look to bolster their respective squads ahead of the second half of the season.

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Dortmund are said to be resisting any temptations to cash in on the talented whiz at this moment in time, and a January transfer may not be likely given their ambitions to compete domestically and in Europe in the first half of 2024.

His current contract with the German side is not due to expire until the end of the 2025/26 campaign and this means that the club are not under any pressure to sell him in the immediate future.

This means that Liverpool – or Newcastle or Arsenal – will have to be very persuasive in order to secure a deal for his services in January, or next summer.

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If Klopp can seal a swoop for the creative whiz, though, then he could land his next version of Philippe Coutinho – who was a right-footed magician who could play centrally or out wide on the left to cut inside onto his stronger foot.

Coutinho’s form under Klopp for Liverpool
The Brazil international, who was already at Anfield when the German boss arrived in 2015, enjoyed a fantastic time under the current Liverpool manager before his move to Barcelona.

Coutinho racked up 37 goals and 22 assists in 89 appearances in all competitions across three seasons under Klopp’s management.

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His last six months – during the first half of the 2017/18 campaign – were particularly impressive as the sensational whiz caught the eye with his performances.

The ex-Inter prospect contributed with seven goals, six assists, and 2.9 key passes per game across 14 Premier League appearances for Liverpool.

He ranked within the top 4% of English top-flight attacking midfielders and wingers for shot-creating actions (7.47), assists (0.49), and non-penalty goals (0.57) per 90.

[FBCharts] Philippe Coutinho
That came after Coutinho produced 13 goals, seven assists, seven ‘big chances’ created, and 2.1 key passes per match in 31 league outings during the 2016/17 season – his only full term with Klopp.

These statistics show that the Brazilian ace was a sublime creator who was also able to chip in with goals on a regular basis from an attacking midfield or wide position.

His fantastic form for Klopp and Liverpool earned him a staggering £142m transfer to Barcelona, which came as a British record sale, in January 2018.

The Reds could now land their next version of the brilliant dynamo by winning the race to land Brandt’s signature ahead of Newcastle and Arsenal.

The statistics that show why Brandt could be Coutinho 2.0
Firstly, the Dortmund dynamo is similar to Coutinho in the sense that he has spent the majority of his club career as either an attacking midfielder or a left winger.

He is not blessed with blistering pace but has the technique and vision to be a constant threat from either position by coming onto his favoured right foot to unlock opposition defences for his teammates or score for himself.

22/23 Bundesliga

Brandt (via Sofascore)

Appearances

32

Goals

Nine

Assists

Eight

Big chances created

11

Sofascore rating

7.22

Brandt has enjoyed a terrific start to the 2023/24 campaign with a return of four goals, seven assists, 12 ‘big chances’ created, and 2.9 key passes per match in 15 Bundesliga games.

Meanwhile, Trent Alexander-Arnold is currently top of the Liverpool squad with 2.7 key passes per game and ten ‘big chances’ created.

These statistics suggest that the Dortmund ace has the creative skills to be Klopp’s outstanding creator in the middle of the park due to the impressive rate at which he provides his teammates with key passes and ‘big chances’.

[FBCharts] Julian Brandt
In fact, he currently ranks within the top 1% of midfielders in the Men’s Big Five Leagues and European competitions over the last 365 days for shot-creating actions (5.64), xAG (0.38), and assists (0.41) per 90.

The £117k-per-week wizard also ranks within the top 2% of his positional peers for non-penalty goals (0.31) per 90, which shows that he can carry a goal threat to go along with his creativity.

Journalist Musa Okwonga once lauded him as a “magical” player and the statistics back that up as the German gem can conjure up chances for his fellow attackers at an exceptional rate.

Therefore, Klopp could secure his new Coutinho by bringing in a right-footed attacking midfielder who could produce magic performances at Anfield week-in-week-out to help to unlock stubborn low-blocks – like United’s on Sunday.