‘Not yet’; Steve Nicol reveals why Jurgen Klopp should dial back Liverpool approach for in-demand World Cup star

Liverpool legend Steve Nicol feels Valencia midfielder Yunus Musah is not yet ready to join Liverpool despite his stellar displays for USA at the World Cup.

Musah, 20, had been on the Reds radar before the Qatar showpiece. But his performances for The Stars and Stripes have further turned the Anfield hierarchy’s heads. The New York City-born ace started all four of America’s matches, helping them reach the round of 16.

They finished second behind England in Group B, beating Iran in their final group game to advance.

The Netherlands proved too good and a 3-1 loss ended Musah’s participation in the Middle East event.

Of Ghanaian parentage, the youngster was born in the USA before moving to Italy. He began his youth career with Giorgione but was snapped up by Arsenal in 2012.

Having spent seven years with the Gunners youngsters, they sold him to Valencia in summer 2019.

And it took just 12 months before the then teenager was introduced to the first-team picture.

Having made his debut in September 2020, Musah has gone on to enjoy 82 outings in all competitions for Los Che.

It was recently rumoured that Arsenal tried to buy him back but saw their bid rejected.

That has seemingly left the way open for Liverpool to make a move. But, when asked if he is good enough to play for Liverpool, Nicol pulled no punches with his reply.

“Not yet,” he told ESPN. “I mean he has had a good World Cup as far as the dirty side of the game, the running, the challenging, the winning the ball back.

“You could argue that Liverpool’s best team, they had three guys in the middle of the park that were really good at that.

“But no, I don’t think he’s close to Liverpool yet.”

London clubs test the water for Musah

Liverpool have made contact with Valencia to sound out whether or not they might be open to a sale, according to 90min.

And Chelsea are also said to have enquired about the former England youth interantional.

But he recently suggested a return to Arsenal was not out of the question. He admitted he ‘loved’ playing for the Gunners, adding that ‘it’s possible’ he will end up in the north of the capital one day.

However, links to Anfield seem strongest at the moment. Jurgen Klopp has been tipped to reinforce his midfield ranks next summer.

Whether Musah would be an automatic starter is open to debate.

Nicol clearly thinks he needs to develop his game to earn the right to play for the Merseysiders.

And the man with 23 USA caps is aware of what he needs to work on to take his game to the next level.

“I feel like it’s a responsibility for me to be able to receive the ball and go forward with it,” he said. “If I’m facing my own goal, most of the time I’m not going to be able to go forward.”

It seems inevitable that one of Europe’s top clubs will eventually take a punt on Musah.

Klopp has got most of his recruitment right in recent years. And it remains to be seen if he heeds Nicol’s warning and holds fire on a move for Musah.

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