Although Virgil van Dijk was all the time Liverpool’s No. 1 goal, there have been three different names on the shortlist, together with one who has simply moved to the Premier League.
On the finish of the 2016/17 marketing campaign, it turned clear to Jurgen Klopp that his centre-back choices would require strengthening.
With Joe Gomez sidelined via harm for a lot of the season, Klopp’s most-used defenders had been Joel Matip and Dejan Lovren, with Ragnar Klavan filling in when required.
The membership drew up a shortlist of elite centre-backs that will propel Liverpool to a different stage, and Van Dijk was recognized because the precedence.
However makes an attempt to lure him from Southampton broke down, embarrassingly, with the membership issuing a public apology to their south-coast counterparts for approaching the Dutchman and not using a deal being reached.
That led these throughout the Reds’ recruitment employees to contemplate the options, with three names on the listing: Aymeric Laporte, Kalidou Koulibaly and Jose Gimenez.
Laporte, nonetheless at Athletic Membership, was courting curiosity from a variety of golf equipment together with Man Metropolis, whereas Koulibaly and Gimenez had been thought-about two of Europe’s standout centre-backs.
Klopp, aided by these within the boardroom, weighed up the professionals and cons and resolved that it was, successfully, Van Dijk or bust.
Work was undertaken behind the scenes to fix the connection with Southampton, and ultimately a £75 million deal was struck within the winter of 2018.
That very same window, Laporte joined Metropolis for £57 million, whereas Koulibaly and Gimenez stayed with Napoli and Atletico Madrid respectively.
Whereas persistent accidents have seen Gimenez’s profession plateau, remaining a squad participant for Atletico, it was a shock that Koulibaly stayed with Napoli for so long as he did.
The Senegal captain was usually linked with strikes to a wide range of prime golf equipment in Europe, however stayed loyal to Napoli and, in 2020, gained the primary and solely main trophy of his time in Naples, with the Coppa Italia.
Now, although, after eight years with the Italian membership and now an Africa Cup of Nations winner with Senegal, Koulibaly has lastly made the transfer to the Premier League.
On Saturday, Chelsea confirmed the 31-year-old had joined on a four-year deal, with the London outfit reported to have paid £34 million for his companies.
??#KoulibalyIsChelsea pic.twitter.com/JpYccNef1t
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) July 16, 2022
“My dream was all the time to play within the Premier League,” he informed Chelsea‘s official web site.
So whereas Koulibaly was denied his Premier League dream when Liverpool crossed his title off the shortlist four-and-a-half years in the past, he now finds himself within the English prime flight.
From this season on, then, Koulibaly might be a direct rival of each Van Dijk and Laporte – unsurprisingly, given the Reds’ monitor file in expertise recognizing, as three of the main centre-backs in England.
