Liverpool defensive ace emerges on Inter Milan radar as concerns grow over game time

Liverpool centre-back Jarell Quansah is reportedly on the radar of Italian giants Inter Milan and is a player who is being ‘strongly considered’ for a potential move next summer.

The talented defender made 17 appearances for the Reds in the Premier League last season, although he almost doubled that figure overall as a prominent starter in the cup competitions – both domestically and in Europe.

Former Anfield chief Jurgen Klopp was certainly a fan and there can be no arguing that Quansah largely acquitted himself well when called upon.

However, that fairly rapid rise through the ranks on Merseyside has led to interest from Inter, who are refusing to rest on their laurels after winning the Serie A title last season.

Indeed, it’s been claimed that should Quansah not play a more prominent role this term then he could look to quit Anfield in 2025. And 45 minutes of action through the first four outings of the new campaign is not the most promising of starts.

To that end, Inter Live has detailed the San Siro outfit’s interest in the player, stating that the central defender is ‘very much liked’ by Simone Inzaghi’s men.

The report adds that Inter feel Quansah is the ‘ideal man to be deployed as a pure centre-back’ and that he has ‘great technical and physical characteristics’.

Finally, Inter Live adds that the Italian side will monitor Quansah’s progress through the season and that a transfer ‘should be strongly considered’ if the England Under-21 international does not feature as much as Liverpool as he would have liked.

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Quansah in tough Liverpool centre-back battle

The Reds youngster is one of four senior centre-backs in Arne Slot’s current squad and is competing with Virgil van Dijk, Ibrahma Konate and Joe Gomes for a starting spot on Merseyside.

However, while Klopp was prepared to trust Quansah in some big contests last season, Slot has so far preferred the tried and trusted pairing of Van Dijk and Konate – although Quansah did start the win at Ipswich only to be replaced at half-time of that game.

Speaking towards the end of last season, Klopp even suggested that Quansah had jumped ahead of Konate and Gomez in the pecking order to partner the one constant in Van Dijk.

The German said back in May, after a 4-2 win over Tottenham: “We play once a week and we just look at who looks in the best moment and Jarell is one of them.

“It’s how it is, we don’t play with three centre-halves so that means you have to make a decision, and Jarell is training really well and we have a lot of training sessions.

“It doesn’t mean that Ibou or Joe aren’t training well, but Jarell is doing really well and that’s how it is and that’s why I make these kinds of decisions.

“That’s the best situation I can have, I just look at it and I saw a lot of football in my life so, if you have a chance to make that decision that you can decide on that level who’s a little bit better, then we do it.”

In terms of Inter’s interest in Quansah, they are clearly looking at getting younger at centre-back given that Stefan De Vrij and Francesco Acerbi are both the wrong side of 30 and the versatile Benjamin Pavard is 28.

Do they have younger options, with 25-year-old Alessandro Bastoni the clear diamond at the heart of their defence, while Yann Bisseck, 23, and Tomas Palacios, 21, are up and coming.

Potentially adding Quansah would likely bring an end to 36-year-old Acerbi’s stay at the club, with the Italy international out of contract next summer.

Van Dijk contract situation coming to a head

Liverpool, meanwhile, have been urged to tie Van Dijk and talismanic forward Mo Salah down to new contracts as the pair will be available on free transfers in the summer of 2025 if they do not.

While both are very much still at the top of their game, questions remain at just how long they have left at the very top, coupled with the fact that they are already the club’s two highest earners. To that end, Salah takes home £350,000 a week, with Van Dijk receiving £220,000.

However, former Arsenal midfielder Emmanuel Petit has explained why the pair still have plenty left to give at the very highest level.

Meanwhile, TT has learned that Real Madrid are planning a move for Trent Alexander-Arnold in 2025 – but luring him away from Anfield won’t be easy.

The LaLiga giants are in the process of building another Galacticos squad and are keen to get the England right-back on board.

We understand that Madrid could launch a move for the England international in the summer of 2025 and they believe his friendship with Jude Bellingham strengthens their position.

Quansah v Konate – the stats

In terms of how Quansah compares with his closest rival Konate for that spot alongside Van Dijk, we’ve taken a look at how the two players performed in their defensive roles in the Premier League last season.

Looking at those stats, there really is not that much in it at all, although Quansah is less aggressive judging by the difference in tackles and fouls per game.

One thing that Quansah did have the better of his counterpart on was being a threat in the opposition box, notching two Premier League goals compared to none for Konate.

It’s certainly shaping up to be an interesting battle between the pair as Slot works out his best combinations, while Gomes is more likely to be fourth choice as he also covers both full-back positions.

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