Liverpool’s signing of Thiago Alcantara certainly delighted fans, but it also appears to have impressed those who organise transfers around the top leagues.
It was a bit of a saga at times and the misinformation was real – from not being an “active target” to the suggestion that his arrival meant Gini Wijnaldum was leaving – but landing the former Bayern Munich man was a real statement of the Reds’ standing.
In half an appearance he has quickly shown why he’s so highly thought of, and there’s much more to come from the Spain international once the abysmally planned international break is over.
But in the meantime, others have been nodding in approval at Liverpool’s work in the market, after a report in the Athletic canvassed the opinions of 18 agents to gauge their feelings on the work done in the transfer window.
Thiago was picked out as the best piece of business overall, with 28 per cent opting for his signing, with one summing it up rather nicely: “[A] superb player at a ridiculously low price and well-structured fee.”
Not only is he a top player, but the timing of Liverpool snaring Thiago with one year left on his contract, and ensuring they’ll pay out a relatively modest £5 million per year for him means it was financially viable despite being an older addition to the squad.
On the flip side, the signing of Edinson Cavani was picked out as the worst deal of the window, with his new club Man United being labelled the “worst window” overall by more than a third of the answering agents.
Meanwhile, Rhian Brewster was noted as a surprising transfer, for both the player and the buying club.
“There’s a bit of a risk in terms of the price Sheffield United have paid,” said an agent.
“But there’s also a bit of risk for Brewster in going to a club who don’t have a point yet this season.”
Again, it looks good business for the Reds, particularly given they protected themselves in future with a buy-back clause and a sell-on fee.
The rest were rather generic opinions about the league and their own industry, though 68 per cent said Liverpool would win the title, even after the Villa result.
The bottom line appeared to be the team’s mentality, which most people inside the game would agree with:
“Liverpool know how to win and they’ve done it, so you can’t go against them.”
However, and perhaps to prove the point that even those who do work in the game can’t always be relied upon for sound reasoning, one anonymous agent left the Reds out entirely when picking his top four.
Maybe their client was someone we didn’t want!
Fan Comments