“Behind The Scenes…” – David Lynch On Liverpool’s Move For Martin Zubimendi | OneFootball

After a quiet summer window so far, Kopites around the world found themselves playing a game of transfer Guess Who? earlier this week.

The Athletic’s David Ornstein tweeted that Liverpool have prioritised signing a no. 6 and that their key target was not currently playing in the Premier League. After just over 24 hours of speculation, both Ornstein and local journalist David Lynch revealed that Real Sociedad’s Martín Zubimendi has been identified by the Reds’ transfer committee as the man best suited to play at the base of Arne Slot’s midfield.

Reports from Spain have since confirmed that Sociedad expect Zubimendi to accept the move but a fee is yet to be agreed. The 25-year-old has a €60m release clause which would need to be paid in full unless sporting director Richard Hughes can convince the Basque side to accept a lower offer.

On the latest episode of our Transfer Insight show, we spoke to LFC correspondent David Lynch for the inside scoop on the Zubimendi transfer.

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David said:

“There are some hurdles for them to clear. Obviously, the fee is there in terms of the release clause, but exactly how they go about paying that, and then also in terms of convincing the player.

“Liverpool will have made some quiet behind-the-scenes moves in terms of assessing whether Zubamendi will be up for it because we know in the past with Arsenal and possibly Barcelona as well that he’s maybe turned down those moves and felt it was better to stay at Real Sociedad for a little bit longer.

“I’ve no doubt with the relationship that Richard Hughes has got with his agent that they’ve at least been given some encouragement.

“The contract’s got to be right, you’ve got to get all that sort of stuff lined up, and whether he makes the final call to leave his boyhood club because that’s been a big difficulty for him so far in his career.

“The initial signs and the fact that it’s reached this point I think are encouraging. It’s just about getting those last bits sorted, and they are big bits to sort, so we’ll see where it goes from here.

“Maybe he has not felt it was the right time previously, rather than just being determined to play for Real Sociedad for his entire career, and I think Liverpool is a very attractive option.

“It’s a side that’s consistently challenged for the title in recent years, it tends to go deep in the Champions League, it’s Anfield, it’s where Xabi Alonso played – who I have no doubt has been a thought in his mind as an influence on his career.”

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Redmen Reacts

A move to Liverpool would cap off a golden summer for Martín Zubimendi. The defensive midfielder made three appearances in Spain’s victorious Euro 2024 campaign, including replacing Rodri at half-time in the final against England.

Liverpool certainly struck gold the last time they signed a defensive midfielder from Real Sociedad. It was twenty years ago that a promising La Liga star named Xabi Alonso made Anfield his home, going on to win the Champions League in his first season at the club. A repeat of that would do nicely, Martín!

Whilst Zubimendi lacks some of the technical gifts and passing vision that made Alonso a great of the game, his pass completion is very good – especially under pressure – and he rarely loses the ball. He could dovetail well with Alexis Mac Allister – whilst the Argentinian performed well in a deep-lying role last season, having a more defensively-minded player alongside him could free him to make key passes for the forward line.

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