The Latest on Dejan Lovren, Xherdan Shaqiri & Other Fringe Players' Futures at Liverpool

With Liverpool romping away with the Premier League title, many have already turned their attention to discussing how Jurgen Klopp can continue building an impenetrable empire on Merseyside.


The Reds are 22 points clear at the top of the table, have failed to lose a single Premier League game this season and have won 24 out of the 25 matches they have played. But there's always room for improvement, always room for tinkering and there's always unhappy players watching on from the sidelines when a team is this successful, right?

Jurgen Klopp

Yes, Liverpool may be running away with things and winning everything in sight, but Klopp can only pick 11 players at a time - and it's hardly surprising to know that he only rotates his side when he really has to.


So that brings into focus the futures of a number of fringe players at Liverpool, and is something that the ​Liverpool Echo have touched on. 


Among those in the spotlight are Dejan Lovren, Xherdan Shaqiri, Adam Lallana, Harry Wilson and Nathaniel Clyne, as well as breakthrough youngsters Curtis Jones and Neco Williams, who have both shone brightly in domestic cup competitions.


Perhaps the most unfortunate to be watching on from the sidelines is Lovren, given his improvement under Klopp. The Croatian was once an error prone centre-back who looked incredibly edgy, but he's looked more assured over the past year or so - putting in some of his best performances in Liverpool's colours.

Jurgen Klopp,Dejan Lovren

Unfortunately for Lovren, he has Joe Gomez and Joel Matip vying with him for a spot alongside Virgil van Dijk - and it's not a contest he looks like winning. Consequently, an exit from ​Liverpool looks the most likely solution, even though the club opted to rebuff Roma's advances last summer.

Then, ​Lovren was valued around £14m, but the Echo's report claims that Liverpool may lower that asking price this summer, and could sanction a deal worth around £10m. The former ​Southampton defender is keen to move on so he can play more games, and it's unlikely the Reds will stand in his way once again.

As for Lallana and Clyne, both are expected to leave the club for free at the end of the season. The duo, also formerly of Southampton, have endured injury nightmares throughout their time on Merseyside, so a fresh start is likely to be welcomed by both, despite Liverpool's recent success.

Lallana is wanted by a number of top sides - Leicester, Tottenham and Arsenal included - while Clyne's future destination is unknown after his loan spell at Bournemouth was cut short by - you guessed it - injury.

Liverpool's stance on Xherdan Shaqiri may also change in the summer, with a permanent £25m sale just one of a number of possibilities. That may depend on the club's summer recruitment, though, with moves for Kai Havertz and Philippe Coutinho tipped. Harry Wilson, currently at Bournemouth on loan, is another who could leave permanently.

Jones and Williams, meanwhile, will become assets to the first team squad and won't be going anywhere. Instead, they will play second fiddle to Liverpool's current crop of first team stars, accumulating small pockets of minutes here and there to continue their development.


Source : 90min