Big names in attack and midfield like Mario Gotze and Ilkay Gundogan, as exciting as they might be, simply don’t address pressing needs. A similarly big name goalkeeper would.
As such, it’s been hard for Liverpool fans to stay calm about rumours linking the club with a move for Marc-Andre ter Stegen that have been rumbling along for months. It will be harder still now that Catalan paper Sport has reported Liverpool have proposed a bid in excess of €20M for ter Stegen and that it is being considered.
It’s not all good news for the Reds, though, as Sport claim Manchester City have also proposed a very similar deal, and that if Barcelona find the proposals to be acceptable it will then be up to the player to decide if he wants to join Liverpool or Manchester City in the summer—with City likely able to offer higher wages.
The presence of Jürgen Klopp at Anfield, though, could provide a draw for ter Stegen, who is desperate to position himself as the heir apparent to Manuel Neuer in the German national team. The path to the starting role at Liverpool would also seem more clear cut than at Manchester City given the presence of Joe Hart.
If City aren’t committed to moving on from Hart, it would potentially mean ter Stegen would be walking into a very similar situation to the one that has left him dissatisfied at the Camp Nou. At Anfield, on the other hand, it seems a certainty that if he arrived, it would be as the club’s designated new starting goalkeeper.
Meanwhile, in what could hint at a summer that sees a tectonic shift in the world of Premier League goalkeeping, there are rumours if ter Stegen does leave for England this summer, Barcelona have identified Chelsea’s Thibaut Courtois as his replacement. If true, it would be a blow to Chelsea—and a boon for Liverpool.
With Real Madrid expected to come back for David de Gea in the summer, it could mean both Chelsea and Manchester United lose their goalkeepers—probably England’s two best—to Spain. If, in that environment, Liverpool landed ter Stegen it would be a massive coup for the Reds.