4 months ago
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Photo by Kaz Photography/Getty Images
Recent reports out of Japan claimed a deal that would bring Takefusa Kubo to Liverpool was nearly completed.
Two weeks into pre-season and with the kickoff of the 2024-25 campaign now less than a month away, Liverpool have yet to make any first team signings for new manager Arne Slot. It’s a situation that has some fans growing a little concerned.
That made for a lot of excitement over reports out of Japan that 23-year-old Real Sociedad winger Takefusa Kubo was Liverpool-bound, with negotiations said to be advanced with a fee and personal terms agreed. That, it turns out, may have been wrong.
At least according to journalists with ties at the Liverpool end, with The Athletic’s James Pearce saying both the Reds and Real Sociedad have said the clubs are not talking and that a deal not only isn’t imminent, it’s likely not happening at all.
Those hopeful of the club signing the player who was once dubbed the Japanese Messi will be disappointed, but it’s worth noting that the player’s profile raised some eyebrows when he was linked given his biggest strikes against are pace and finishing.
While Liverpool may have a new manager in charge this season, they’re still expected to maintain a broad tactical continuity from the Jürgen Klopp era, with the return of former sporting director Michael Edwards nodding to those goals.
An undersized winger with questions over pace and finishing—the skills most valued in past recruitment—does seem an odd fit, though as Kubo profiles similar to Harvey Elliott in the current squad a move into a deeper role could be a possibility.
