Liverpool will have to fork out €50 million to sign Club Brugge defensive mainstay Joel Ordonez ahead of the 2026/27 season.
Liverpool are targeting Club Brugge defender Joel Ordonez to replace Ibrahima Konate, who has departed for Real Madrid on a free transfer this summer. According to Fichajes, the Merseyside club will need to pay around €50 million to secure the 22-year-old Ecuadorian international, who is admired by their new manager, Andoni Iraola.
While the Merseyside club have had a look at a number of options, they consider the youngster a top target to fill that void. The in-demand Ordonez, who joined Brugge in the summer of 2023, has established himself as one of the best young defenders. He has made quite a name for himself with his impressive performances for both club and country. Last season, the Ecuadorian international featured in 46 games, and he even bagged four goals.
Why do Liverpool want Ordonez?
The South American centre-back is a front-footed defender with superb game-reading skills and exceptional composure on the ball. Not only does he have a strong physical presence, but he is also quite athletic at 1.88m tall. Those are qualities that have endeared Ordonez to Andoni Iraola.
The newly-appointed Liverpool head manager prefers having pacey, courageous centre-backs who can feature in a high-line and cover the space in behind. Ordonez has everything that Iraola seeks in a new centre-back to help replace Konate.
While he is only 22 and is still developing, the Merseyside club believes he could become a key figure in the team in the long run. With Virgil van Dijk also in the final phase of his career, the youngster could also become one of the leaders of their team going forward.
With the Ecuadorian defender’s contract running until 2029, Club Brugge won’t let him leave on the cheap. As per the report, they seek around €50 million to sanction the departure of the Ecuadorian international.
Also Read: Three players Liverpool should target under Andoni Iraola
The Reds did have a look at him during the winter window as well. While they did not go ahead with it back then, Liverpool are now ready to push hard to strike a deal with Brugge ahead of next season.
