Alonso eyes superb Liverpool star for Bayer Leverkusen, as Carragher names Slot worry

Xabi Alonso is hopeful of signing talented Liverpool defender Sepp van den Berg for Bayer Leverkusen this summer, according to reports, while Jamie Carragher has discussed the new style of Reds head coach Arne Slot.

Liverpool have mainly focused on outgoings so far this summer, with experienced trio Thiago, Joel Matip and Adrian all leaving following the expiry of their contracts before Fabio Carvalho was sold to Brentford on Monday. Liverpool have received an initial £20million for the attacking midfielder, while the deal could eventually be worth £27.5m through bonuses.

Liverpool had hoped that their next piece of business would see a new player arrive on Merseyside, as sporting director Richard Hughes set his sights on Martin Zubimendi to elevate Slot’s midfield.

Liverpool were initially confident of signing the Spaniard but ultimately missed out as Real Sociedad convinced him to stay put and start talks over a new contract with them.

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Instead of capturing the Euro 2024 winner, Liverpool could engineer another sale next.

According to the latest reports in the German media, rising star Van Den Berg has appeared on Alonso’s wish list at Leverkusen.

The centre-back shone while on loan at Mainz last season. Mainz tried to sign Van Den Berg permanently but could not get anywhere close to Liverpool’s demands, which have been set at £17-20m.

Van Den Berg has also been linked with Dutch giants such as Ajax and PSV, but they have not submitted a big enough offer either, which has given Leverkusen an opportunity.

Liverpool transfer news: Alonso hunts Van Den Berg

Due to the fantastic way Leverkusen have been run in recent years, plus their amazing success on the pitch, the German outfit have more than enough money to swoop in and pay around £20m for Van Den Berg.

As such, they could now be considered frontrunners to complete the deal.

Alonso has kept tabs on the Dutchman in recent seasons but was particularly impressed by his great performances for Mainz.

Alonso and Leverkusen have now ramped up their interest in Van Den Berg amid rumours current centre-half Odilon Kossounou might leave the reigning Bundesliga champions, with Crystal Palace among the clubs interested in the Ivorian.

Liverpool fans may be disappointed if Van Den Berg does leave, as he is clearly a very good defender who has the potential to shine at the top of the game.

However, the 22-year-old has been open about the fact he wants to join another club where he is guaranteed to start regularly. With Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate already at Anfield, and Hughes chasing Goncalo Inacio, that is unlikely to happen with Liverpool.

Plus, selling Van Den Berg for close to £20m would give Liverpool a handy boost to their transfer budget as they continue to hunt top-class stars.

Jamie Carragher discusses new Slot tactics

Meanwhile, former Liverpool defender Carragher has braced the club’s supporters for the ‘less exciting’ style that Slot will engineer following the exit of club icon Jurgen Klopp.

Carragher is seemingly worried about there being less entertainment at Anfield next season, though the change in tactics could actually benefit the Liverpool defence.

“Arne Slot will have a different approach from Jurgen Klopp because I’ve seen snippets of that in the pre-season,” the pundit said.

“It looks like it will be a more controlled build up, slightly more possession based. I’ve seen people talk about it already, that he’s completely different to Klopp, but under Jurgen Klopp Liverpool used to have 60 per cent of the ball and dominated possession.

“Maybe the games will be less end-to-end, maybe less exciting and more controlled. Even when you watched Liverpool under Jurgen Klopp last season there were things they could improve, defence was one area they could improve so having more control in games could certainly help that.”

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