Liverpool defender Alberto Moreno is reportedly set to leave Anfield at the end of the season, amid interest from La Liga champions Barcelona.
According to a report from Goal, Liverpool are set to lose Spanish full-back Alberto Moreno on a free transfer in the summer, when his contract with the club runs out. The defender is in the final year of his contract and could be on the move when the deal expires at the end of the season.
The 26-year-old arrived at Liverpool from La Liga outfit Sevilla in the summer of 2014, but has never been able to establish himself as the first-choice left-back at Anfield, under both Brendan Rodgers and current manager Jurgen Klopp owing to inconsistent and error-prone displays.
Moreno was behind makeshift full-back James Milner throughout the 2016-17 term. And having started the last season as first-choice, the Spanish international lost his place in the team to Andy Robertson and has been unable to displace the Scotsman from the lineup ever since.
In the 2018-19 campaign, he has taken the field on just one occasion, in Liverpool’s Carabao Cup defeat to Chelsea. In his four years with the Merseyside outfit, Moreno has made 137 appearances in total, scoring three goals and setting up eleven more.
With less than twelve months left on his contract with Liverpool, Moreno will be able to negotiate with foreign clubs starting from January 1. The Reds were believed to be in negotiations with the 26-year-old over a new deal, however there seems to be little progress made and now it is starting to look increasingly likely that the Spaniard will be departing Anfield in the near future.
Liverpool are prepared to leave the 26-year-old, with manager Klopp set to promote 18-year-old full-back Adam Lewis to the first-team. The teenager has established himself as a regular in Neil Critchley’s Liverpool U-23 outfit and has made a strong impression on Klopp, after having trained with the senior team in recent weeks.
There has been interest in his services, mainly from reigning La Liga champions Barcelona. Having allowed Lucas Digne to join Everton in the summer transfer window, the Catalan giants went into the season with Jordi Alba as the only senior left-back in the squad.
To address that issue, the Blaugrana were believed to be plotting a move to sign Moreno in the January transfer window itself. However, they are prepared to wait till the end of the season to bring the three-time capped Spanish international on a Bosman transfer.
With playing time not coming his way at all and contract negotiations hitting a brick wall, it does seem like the end of the road for Moreno at Anfield. It remains to be seen if Barcelona capitalize on the situation and make a move for him in January, or bide their time to sign him on a free transfer at the end of the season.
