Liverpool are keeping an eye on the situation for Memphis Depay in Lyon, whose contract in France will expire at the end of the season.
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The Dutchman, who has collected 14 goals and nine assists for Lyon this season, has been strongly linked with a move to Barcelona, who pressed for him to sign last summer and are still keen to reunite him with manager Ronald Koeman.
Depay has been strongly linked to Barcelona BSR Agency / Getty Images
Barcelona are believed to have other attacking priorities, namely Borussia Dortmund’s Erling Haaland and Manchester City’s Sergio Aguero, so they do not yet agree on Depay, and the Spanish press believes Liverpool are keen to take advantage of that.
First, we had a report from Marca, which says that both Liverpool and Juventus have already submitted formal offers to the 27-year-old.
It is believed that Depay will consider every offer he receives, even if he prefers to join Barcelona, which means he is likely to make a decision until he calculates whether the Spanish side will actually try sign him.
It was later backed by AS. The belief is that Liverpool want a new forward but are not prepared to get lost in the bidding war for Haaland or Paris Saint-Germain’s Kylian Mbappe, and that is why Depay has joined their radar.
Liverpool are excited about the prospect of signing someone like Depay on a free transfer and believe his salary demands would fall into their budget – especially if French forwards like Xherdan Shaqiri, Takumi Minamino and even Divock Origi are sold this summer.
Whether Depay would actually be interested in Liverpool is unclear. Excluding a surprise sale, Liverpool’s top three are pretty set, so Depay would probably have to accept a role as a rotation player, and it’s pretty hard to see him take it at this point in his career.
Depay would not be a guaranteed start for Liverpool | Xavier Laine / Getty Images
Strangely, the report describes Depay as an “undiscovered talent”, which is strange to say about a player that everyone has known for six or seven years now, but the feeling is clear: Liverpool do not want a blockbuster name and are willing to settle for a budget options, of which Depay may be one of the best available.
Manager Jurgen Klopp is keen to strengthen his attacking options, having lost confidence in many of his wingers in the position. He has been forced to play Sadio Mane, Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino on the ground, especially with Diogo Jota missing for around three months with a knee injury.
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