Liverpool have set their sights on German international and Hoffenheim defender, Niklas Sule.
The 21-year-old was linked with a move to Liverpool over the summer, but missed out on the young German after he confirmed his desire to stay in the Bundesliga with his club and play as much as he could in a bid to further his development. “Here I have my usual environment, the proximity to my family in Frankfurt. To develop myself, I need playing time and a coach who trusts me. I have that in Julian Nagelsmann,” he said.
According to a latest report from Fichajes, Liverpool gaffer Jurgen Klopp is still insistent on bringing Sule to Anfield as he believes that he could provide more solidity to his defense.
The report states that Klopp had been following the youngster from early last season and had also followed his performances in the Olympic games. Despite being only 2 months into the new season, the Liverpool hierarchy believes that defensive reinforcements are needed this season and see the 21-year-old as a perfect target and will look to move for him in the January transfer window. However, Klopp and Liverpool will face competition from La Liga teams such as Atletico Madrid and Valencia CF for his signature as they too are reportedly interested.
Liverpool’s fierce Premier League rivals Chelsea were also interested in acquiring the services of the defender given their problems in defence and had made a bid reported to be around the region of €30 million.
But he wasn’t willing to move in order to stay and get more game time. Although, given the current state of Chelsea’s backline, he would’ve likely seen much more game time with the Blues than any 21-year-old in recent memory.
Klopp has been known to prefer young, hardworking players rather than the bigger names in the game, so he can mould them in the manner he wants to without having to deal with the large egos. At 6’5, Sule would quite obviously be a large, imposing presence in the middle of defence.
A threat in the air from set pieces, combined with his impressive ability to read the game and his passing would make him feel right at home in the Premier League. The fact that he chose to avoid big money moves abroad in a bid to further his development at Hoffenheim speaks volumes about the the kind of player he is. He is certainly going to be subject to transfer battles in the near future.