Liverpool are the new favorites to land Southampton midfielder Dusan Tadic. According to the latest bookmakers’ odds, the Reds are currently leading the chase for the Saints star. The United Kingdom bookmakers Sky Bet has priced the Merseyside club at 4/1 on Sunday evening to secure the services of the 29-year-old Serbian international before the January transfer window comes to a close at the start of next month. Jurgen Klopp’s side are a long way ahead in the betting with Tottenham Hotspur priced at 12/1 while Arsenal and Manchester United are both fancied at 25/1.
The Reds of Merseyside has already made a habit of targeting players from Southampton with their latest recruit Virgil Van Dijk making a switch from the Saints in a massive £75m deal to smash the record transfer fee for a defender in world football. The five-time champions of Europe has also acquired the likes of Sadio Mane, Adam Lallana, Nathaniel Clyne, Dejan Lovren and Rickie Lambert in the past few years. It seems highly unlikely that they will raid the Hampshire club once again even though the bookies are making them the favorites to land the Serbian winger.
Tadic has found the back of the net 20 times and made 33 assists during his 142 appearances for the Saints since his move from FC Twente in the summer of 2014.
Liverpool are currently in fourth place in the Premier League standings, three points clear of fifth-placed Tottenham Hotspur with a match against league leaders Manchester City looming on the horizon. The departure of Phillipe Coutinho to Barcelona will come as a massive blow for Jurgen Klopp’s side as they are now in the market to try and find an alternative for the world-class Brazilian.
Tadic is a decent Premier League winger and can open up defenses on his day but he is hardly the eye-catching signing that Liverpool needs right now. The Serbian has made 21 appearances for the Saints this season and scored 2 goals while making 2 assists in all competitions. His record in this campaign is not at all convincing and it hardly fits what the Reds are looking for.
Jurgen Klopp needs to bring in a top quality playmaker capable of scoring and creating goals consistently from the midfield and the Serbian just doesn’t fit that description. There has been a whole host of quality additions made by Liverpool from the St. Mary’s Stadium and Tadic is certainly not of the same ilk as Sadio Mane, Adam Lallana, and Virgil Van Dijk.
