Julian Draxler, the German winger who joined Paris Saint-Germain on January 3, 2017 for a fee of €40m at the tender age of 23, is reportedly ready for transfer away from the French giants. Draxler’s signing by the French club back in January signaled PSG’s continued intent to buy the best players in Europe.
The technically gifted winger, who can also play as a playmaker, is known for his adaptive ability. His tall, slender build complemented by his work-rate allows him to operate as a winger or as an attacking midfielder depending on the team’s requirement. The winger cum creative midfielder has a knack of not only creating but also scoring goals for club and country.
Draxler has gone on to make over 36 appearances at Paris since he joined and has scored 11 goals and created 5 goals as well. He, however, has failed to cement a regular starting place in his tenure at the club due to some heavy new signings. The 24-year old will now find it difficult to regain a regular starting spot with the likes of Neymar and Mbappe orchestrating the PSG attack and Di Maria and Lucas as backups.
PSG on the other hand, spent close to £200 million in transfers this summer and are likely to list a host of big names on their selling list to balance the books. With the arrival of the superstar Brazilian and French teenage sensation Mbappe, Draxler’s chance of upstaging either of them for a first-team spot looks bleak. Draxler has fallen down the pecking order and a move for the German could be possible in the January window.
Reports have confirmed that Liverpool are preparing for the possible departure of Philippe Coutinho, and Jurgen Klopp has identified Draxler as the man to replace the Brazilian playmaker.
Philippe Coutinho has become a Liverpool mainstay in the Premier League. His rise to prominence saw the Brazilian become subject of interest from many clubs around the world. He has played out of his skin for the last few years at Anfield and Liverpool will need plenty of class to replace him should he leave.
The story of Coutinho’s rise became very relevant in Catalonia when Barcelona lost his compatriot Neymar this season to Paris Saint Germain. The French club shocked the world by paying out the Brazilian’s release clause, a whopping £198m.
After losing Neymar, Barcelona looked for replacements for the Brazilian attacker. Borussia Dortmund’s Ousmane Dembele and Liverpool’s Philippe Coutinho emerged as the top targets. While Dembele’s move was easy to complete, Liverpool showed enough stubbornness to keep hold of the player
However, if he were to leave next window, Draxler would be a very good replacement to bring in. The German who won the Confederations Cup in the summer, will, however, be an untested product in the Premier League. Do you think he can completely replace Coutinho?
