‘I’m a big fan’ – talkSPORT pundit urges ‘exceptional’ PL player to join Liverpool this summer | OneFootball

Darren Bent has urged Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi to join Liverpool this summer.

The England international has entered the final 12 months of his current deal at Selhurst Park and Arne Slot’s side are believed to be showing strong interest in his services.

Having already completed the signings of Jeremie Frimpong and Florian Wirtz from Bayer Leverkusen, as well as closing in on a deal for Bournemouth’s Milos Kerkez, the Premier League champions mean business this summer.

Former Premier League striker Bent has admitted he’s ‘a big fan’ of the former Chelsea man and reckons Anfield is ‘the place to go’ at the moment.

“It’s a difficult one, but if Liverpool come calling, certainly with the way Liverpool are recruiting at the minute and thickening their squad, that’s the place to go,” Bent told talkSPORT (via The Boot Room).

“I get it, you may have to go there and battle for a spot, but I think Konate has got one year left, he (Guehi) has got one year left, it might be best for all parties, including the player — Liverpool sell Konate to Real Madrid if they are willing to pay and then you buy Guehi, and then neither goes for free.

“You (both) get a fee for both players, and Guehi can go to Liverpool and start. I’m a big fan of his.”

Ibou Konate’s future at Liverpool remains far from clear at present as the Frenchman also approaches the final year of his current contract.

The former RB Leipzig man was signed by Jurgen Klopp in the summer of 2021 and has since become a solid partner alongside Virgil van Dijk at the heart of our backline.

The 26-year-old is stalling on signing a new deal however, with La Liga giants Real Madrid believed to be keeping tabs on his situation as they eye another free transfer steal from the Merseysiders.

Marc Guehi would be a great addition to Slot’s squad

Former Manchester City and England stopper Joe Hart previously labelled Guehi as ‘exceptional’ (via BBC Sport) following a victory for the Three Lions during EURO 2024 and we must admit we’ve been impressed whenever we’ve seen the defender in action.

The 24-year-old made 44 appearances for the Eagles last term (across all competitions) and was one of the main reasons behind their FA Cup success.

If Konate was to move on this summer, which we’re hoping he doesn’t, the Palace favourite would come straight in to our starting XI alongside van Dijk.

It would leave Joe Gomez as our only other senior central defender with Jarell Quansah headed to Bayer Leverkusen and Nat Phillips recently completing a switch to West Brom.

We’re hoping Guehi would join the club and become a teammate of Konate’s – rather than replacing him – but only time will tell.