Liverpool’s transfer plans took a hit ahead of the January transfer window when AS Roma left-back, Emerson Palmieri declared he is happy at the club. He expressed his feelings of flattery over other club’s interest in him, but he has decided to play out his contract with the club.
Emerson went down with an anterior cruciate ligament tear in a 3-2 win over Genoa, in Francesco Totti’s farewell game last season. After a long stint on the sidelines, he has finally returned to the Roma squad and made a late appearance in the 3-1 win against SPAL 2013 on 1st of December.
The 23-year-old came to Roma for a fee of €2m from Santos on after serving a loan spell with the club. He was primarily a second choice to Lucas Digne but is now eyeing for a return to first-team football under Eusebio De Francesco. Roma are currently in the 4th spot of the league table 5 points behind leaders, Inter Milan who were also interested in the Brazilian.
Emerson featured in the U-17 Brazilian national team but after a considerable amount of time spent in Italy, he chose to play for the European nation after being pursued by the head coach, Gian Piero Ventura.
Jurgen Klopp just like Jose Mourinho of Manchester United has had his share of problems in the left-back position for some time now. It took a long time for Alberto Moreno to get picked in the first team due to his lack of defensive qualities. James Milner was mostly fielded in the position last season.
With Moreno facing a 6-week spell on the sidelines after picking up an ankle injury in a 7-0 win against Spartak Moscow, summer signing Andrew Robertson has been given the nod to start in the last 3 Premier League fixtures.
Although Moreno has established himself as the first choice this season, Klopp is in dire need of quality defensive players to fix the vulnerable backline. Emerson Palmiera is a good candidate for the spot with his ability to affect the game on both ends of the pitch.
Aleksander Kolarov is the current choice to start after arriving from Manchester City in the summer and might just continue to do so for the remainder of the season. Ready to establish himself as a professional, it is crucial for Emerson to start appearing in continuous fixtures. Liverpool might be the right spot under a favoured manager like Klopp.
However, Roma fans can be pleased with Emerson’s allegiance to the club and is a positive note on their ambitions of winning the title by the end of the season.
