Liverpool reportedly set to reject permanent offers for 26-year-old this summer | OneFootball

Liverpool are reportedly set to reject any offers to sell 26-year-old Takumi Minamino on a permanent basis from the club at the end of the season.

According to The Mirror, Minamino is seen as a player who will be part of Jurgen Klopp’s plans in the long-term and they do not want to sell him this summer.

The report claims that Minamino will not return for a second loan stint with Southampton, but does not rule out a temporary transfer to another club.

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ANFIELD WATCH VERDICT

Minamino is at that funny age where he is not a young and promising player but also isn’t an experienced pro who has fully developed. The 26-year-old has not shown enough to suggest that he will be part of Liverpool’s plans in the immediate future, but perhaps Klopp has seen enough from him in training and in matches to think that he still has some development to go through before being ready to play for the club. Minamino may just need year of English football to adjust to the culture and the way of playing in the Premier League in order to fully adapt to Liverpool’s style of play.

The Japan international has averaged a woeful WhoScored rating of 6.42 in the Premier League for Southampton, despite scoring twice in seven starts. He is averaging more losses of possession through poor control (1.3) than he is dribbles (0.3) and chances created (0.4) per game for Southampton. This suggests that he is losing the ball too often whilst also failing to provide consistent quality going forward for the Saints, which is why he may not be ready to slot into Klopp’s squad at the start of next season.

Instead of playing for Liverpool next term, the 26-year-old could benefit from another season on loan to a Premier League team. The report states that Southampton are unlikely to bring him back to St. Mary’s, so Liverpool could start testing the water by offering Minamino to clubs further down the table to see if they want to help develop him for a season.