With Liverpool having already completing the signing of two of Southampton’s star players, the Times are reporting that the Reds could now be set to go for a third. Midfielder Adam Lallana and striker Rickie Lambert recently arrived at Anfield, with defender Dejan Lovren now the latest to be linked with a move to Merseyside.
The Saints will be reluctant for Brendan Rodgers’ side to return to St Mary’s for any more players, with the chance of them building on last season’s impressive top half finish now dependent on how they spend the transfer fees they have received. Most importantly though, they will need to ensure their defence is as solid as last season, when they conceded fewer goals than teams such as Liverpool and Tottenham. Losing Lovren would make repeating such a feat incredibly difficult.
Southampton paid of a fee of around £8.5 million to acquire the Croatia international’s services from Lyon just over a year ago. He featured in 31 of the club’s Premier League games last season, which is impressive considering he was ruled out for six to eight weeks with ankle ligament damage in January. The 24-year-old’s toughness and all-round performances in his debut campaign in England’s top flight would make him an attractive signing for many of Europe’s top sides.
Should Liverpool sign Lovren, they could be seen to be doing something to similar to what their neighbours Everton did with Wigan last summer. Unlike the Latics, however, Southampton were not relegated, meaning that any of their players brought in by the Reds may not have as much to prove to the Anfield faithful.