Liverpool,who had a brilliant run in the Champions League last season, have been linked with various goalkeepers ever since Loris Karius’ atrocious display in Kyiv on the night of the European Cup final. One of the names which were doing the rounds was that of Atletico Madrid‘s stopper Jan Oblak and if latest reports are to be believed. However, the Reds’ chances of signing the Slovenian goalkeeper has all but come to an end.
Recently, Oblak was asked about where his future lies to which he replied,” I have a contract.”
It’s reminiscent of a girl’s reply when she is not interested in the guy and Oblak is also buoyed by the fact that players like Antoine Griezmann have decided to commit their long-term future to the club.
Oblak has slowly made his name as one of the best goalkeepers in the world ever since he joined Atletico Madrid in 2014 to replace Thibaut Courtois. The 25-year-old had kept a whopping 29 clean sheets in all competitions last season and that has taken his overall tally of clean sheets at Los Rojiblancos to 93 in 162 appearances. The numbers are certainly boosted by the fact that he has a strong defensive unit in front of him but Oblak has also played a huge part in Atletico Madrid’s success over the past few years.
The Europa League holders have insisted that they will not let their star goalkeeper leave for anything less than £88m which happens to be his release clause.
It is clear that Liverpool are in desperate need of a goalkeeper in the summer and they have been thwarted away by the likes of AS Roma and Atletico Madrid and it remains to be seen which option Jurgen Klopp will prefer in the transfer market.
It might very well happen that Karius will be trusted with being the no. 1 stopper in the upcoming season, however, that move will certainly not go down well among the Liverpool fanbase as they are still fuming over the mistakes which cost them the Champions League title.
It was highly unlikely in the first place that Liverpool will go on to spend in excess of £90m for a goalkeeper but such is the case in today’s market that a club has to pay such amounts to land their targets. Oblak would have certainly boosted Liverpool’s squad but the Merseyside club shouldn’t waste time on repenting their lost opportunities and probably should look forward to other alternatives in the transfer market.