Liverpool and a handful of other clubs reportedly enquired about Denis Zakaria at the start of the year or just before and it appears as though the Reds remain interested in the Swiss midfield maestro.
At 25, Zakaria is heading into the peak of his powers as a midfielder which has caught the eye of clubs all around Europe as his contract with Borussia Monchengladbach expires at the end of the season.
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Sport Bild reported in December that with just months remaining on his contract, he will be allowed to leave the club in January for a fee as low as £6million in order for Gladbach to receive a fee of some sort.
According to Jonathan Shrager on Twitter, “Manchester United, Liverpool, Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich have all recently enquired about the possibility of signing Denis Zakaria in January.”
In recent days, BILD Sport, via LFC Transfer Room, named Liverpool as one of the favourites to land Zakaria but it would now appear as though Manchester United have edged ahead of their most hated rivals and have opened negotiations to sign the 6ft2in midfielder.
Respected Bundesliga journalist Patrick Berger reports that Manchester United have held “good talks with Rangnick, Judge and player agents”.
The journo goes on to say that “Gladbach would let Zak go for €6-7m” but it’s still an “open race as BVB, Juve & Liverpool [are] interested too.”
He adds that there is yet to be a bid from Man Utd or any club but given that Zakaria can be snapped up for such a low fee leads me to believe it won’t be long at all until he leaves Borussia Park.
Signing Zakaria could make the difference for Liverpool this month. While the last week has been dominated by the talk surrounding COVID-19, injuries and the Arsenal postponement, it won’t be long until Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah are back in the mix.
Should Mane and Salah return to Liverpool without injury and are afforded enough time to rest and recuperate to feel recharged enough to lead the line again for the Reds, Jurgen Klopp’s attacking lineup should go back to normal.
While there are still question marks lingering over the Reds’ attack, the inability to control the middle of the park has been a bigger issue this season and the main cause for dropped points this season.
Signing someone like Zakaria can help restore some of the stability and control that Gini Wijnaldum offered Liverpool before his transfer to PSG and while Thiago is the master of controlling the engine room, having a no.8 with the Swiss international’s running power and defensive awareness will prevent midfielders from overrunning the Anfield outfit.
