Shock double Liverpool deal explodes into life as Klopp puts his foot down

Liverpool are interested in extending the contracts of exit-linked midfielder Thiago Alcantara and centre-back Joel Matip, according to reports.

The Merseyside club have undergone something of a rebuild during the summer transfer window but Jurgen Klopp is keen to keep hold of the duo.

Liverpool made four additions, all of whom were midfielders. This came after they have parted ways with six first-team players since last season.

There was plenty of speculation linking more Liverpool players with exits, though. Thiago was one of them.

As reported by TEAMtalk, several Turkish clubs were interested in signing the Spanish centre-mid but he decided to remain at Anfield and fight for his place. 

Thiago is yet to feature this season due to a hip injury but has been pictured back on the training ground in recent days. Nevertheless, no return date has been given by Liverpool and he is unexpected to be available for the foreseeable future.

The 32-year-old also missed 26 games due to injury last season. He is undeniably a valuable player for the Reds when fully fit, though.

Matip, on the other hand, missed five games to injury last term. The defender has made four appearances so far this season, but has fallen behind Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate in the pecking order.

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Liverpool set to hold talks with Thiago, Matip

Despite the injury problems and inconsistent playing time for Thiago and Matip, Klopp is keen to tie the duo down to new deals.

Both player’s contracts are set to expire at the end of the season. Extending them would also stop Liverpool losing them on free transfers.

According to Caught Offside, the Reds are are ‘interested’ in ‘holding discussions’ with the representatives of Thiago and Matip.

The report adds that no talks have taken place yet, but they are expected to occur before January. At that point, if they still haven’t signed new deals, they will be able to speak to other clubs about a pre-contract agreement (to leave on a free transfer at the end of the season).

Of the pair, Matip is viewed as the most valuable, as a consequence of Liverpool’s problems in defence. The Cameroon international revealed in an interview this week that he is keen to extend his stay at Anfield.

When asked about links with former club Schalke, the defender said: “Of course, Schalke was my youth club – as a Schalke fan it was an absolute honour to play there. I had the opportunity to do that for a long time and here in Liverpool, with these absolute top conditions, you don’t just walk away.”

With that in mind, it will be interesting to see if Liverpool are successful in extending the deals of Thiago and Matip, with talks set to open soon.

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