Jude Bellingham ‘expected’ to join Liverpool next summer with the Reds willing to risk losing Naby Keita for free – Simon Jones | OneFootball

Liverpool are not intending to sell Naby Keita this summer but are prepared to risk losing the Guinea international for free in 12 months time.

The Reds’ No. 8 is believed to be considering his future at Anfield after reportedly becoming unhappy with amount of game time he’s receiving whilst England international Bellingham is ready to make the switch to Anfield next summer, that’s according to the Daily Mail’s Simon Jones.

Keita has somewhat failed to deliver since arriving from RB Leipzig in 2018 and has missed a huge number of games with consistent injuries and most recently through illness.

He was named as a substitute as Jurgen Klopp’s side were held to a 1-1 draw by Crystal Palace on Monday night.

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With many of the Anfield outfit’s current midfield options beginning to age with Jordan Henderson, James Milner, Thiago Alcantara and Fabino all approaching or over 30, many Liverpool supporters believe that area needs strengthening during the current window.

Klopp has remained confident in the ‘size and strength’ of his squad, however, and it therefore appears that there will be no more incomings at the club before the transfer window slams shut on September 1.

Harvey Elliott was a standout performer against the Eagles recently whilst Fabio Carvalho also entered the fray as a late substitute.

Both teenagers are showing a lot of potential and have the ability to be stars in this Liverpool side in years to come, but there must also be some consideration for the here and now.

Thiago, Curtis Jones and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain are all sidelined through injury which is also not helping matters at the moment.

Bellingham, meanwhile, is a serious talent and is a fully-fledged England International who already has Champions League experience under his belt with Dortmund.

He appears to be a player made for Liverpool so it’s therefore understandable as to why we’re willing to wait for his services until next year.

He has the potential to star in our midfield for the next decade at least but talk of Keita leaving during the current window is concerning.

He may not have hit the heights many expected from him after his £52m move from the Bundesliga but it wouldn’t make sense to lose a player in a key area of the pitch without replacing him.

We’ll have to wait and see what happens in the coming weeks but the news regarding Bellingham is certainly positive.

EOTK Insider Opinion: 76% of fans want Liverpool to sell Naby Keïta after transfer bombshell dropped – but Jürgen Klopp would be insane to let him go