Liverpool in talks to sign gifted ace; "player happy to join so contract not a problem"

Liverpool are reportedly in talks to sign Youri Tielemans, according to journalist Daniel Nielson, who claims the current asking price is too high but the Reds will negotiate a lower fee.

"Deadwood will also be sold to fund the transfer and other upcoming transfers. The player is happy to join LFC so contract is not a problem. Will battle other teams though."

Brendan Rodgers' side will demand a fee in the region of £70million, according to the Leicester Mercury, and it doesn't take a genius to realise that's a lot more than Liverpool would be willing to pay for the Belgian.

After Het Nieuwsblad reported that Liverpool have shortlisted Tielemans as an option to replace Gini Wijnaldum, Eurosport claimed he is stalling on renewing his contract with Leicester City and this could be to see what offers are on the table this summer.

The last couple weeks of the season were a rollercoaster for the 24-year-old midfielder. He scored the winner against Chelsea in the FA Cup final, striking a 30-yard thunderbolt to claim his first piece of silverware in England.

From there, his side slipped to the humiliating fact that they let Champions League football slip from between their fingers for the second year in a row.

The Belgian star won Leicester’s Players Player of the Year award, highlighting just how highly he is regarded by his teammates.

He wins the prize despite Vardy once again hitting his standard heights with 17 goals and 9 assists for the Foxes.

That said, Vardy is an out and out no.9 while Tielemans is a midfielder and yet, the 24-year-old was directly involved in 15 goals himself.

His best and most important was obviously the piledriver against Chelsea but what Jurgen Klopp is likely most attracted to is his combination of goalscoring from midfield and ability to win the ball back and move it on quickly.

Players that dwell on the ball in the Premier League don’t stick around too long but not only does Tielemans know exactly how long to hold onto the ball, but his pass selection is also fantastic.

Wijnaldum is joining Barcelona and his role in the squad needs to be filled which makes the reported interest in Tielemans very logical. He’s similarly gifted on the ball but the Belgian is far more attack-minded.

That said, the Dutchman came from Newcastle United as an attacking midfielder but was transformed into a ball-carrying no.8 with his role in the starting XI primarily focussed on ball-retention, recycling play and winning the ball back.

According to Squawka’s Comparison Matrix, Tielemans made 86 tackles in the Premier League this season which is so much higher than Wijnaldum’s 23. Similarly, the Foxes midfielder (46) leads the soon-to-be Barcelona star (26) for interceptions.

He’ll fit Liverpool like a glove.

One issue Tielemans might have with a potential move to Anfield would be game time.

Gini Wijnaldum might have played 51 times for Liverpool this season but would that have been the case if Jordan Henderson was fully fit or if Fabinho wasn’t required to deputize at centre-back 21 times in the absence of Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip?

I’m not so sure. A combination of Fabinho, Henderson and Thiago is arguably Liverpool’s strongest midfield three and we’re still yet to see them lineup together but my bet is that it will be a very dominant and fluid midfield three.

That said, with the Reds sure to be challenging domestically and in Europe again next season, Klopp will need options and Tielemans is one of the best options out there.