Liverpool set sights on ‘versatile’ €55m Barcelona player | OneFootball

Although Alejandro Balde and Jules Kounde have given very little to complain about this season, there is no doubt that the fullback positions are one area of weakness in this FC Barcelona team.

Both flanks are somewhat lacking in depth, with only the youngsters Hector Fort and Gerard Martin available to replace Kounde and Balde, respectively.

In such a context, Barcelona were recently linked with the Liverpool fullback, Trent Alexander-Arnold, who is looking highly likely to leave the Premier League side after his current contract ends at the end of this season.

However, the Englishman is much more strongly linked with Real Madrid, and as things stand, the chances of him joining the Merengues are much higher than of him joining Barcelona.

But irrespective of which club he ends up joining, his departure from Liverpool can have significant implications for the Blaugranes.

This is clear from a report from Fichajes, which claims that the Merseyside club has identified the Barcelona defender Jules Kounde as their preferred replacement for their star fullback.

Being equally adept both in the center of the defense and on the flank, Kounde’s versatility is one of the attributes that has attracted the interest of Arne Slot.

Furthermore, the Dutch coach is also looking for a fullback who can contribute both to defense and offense, and Kounde particularly excels in this regard.

The report goes on to claim that the Reds have already offered €50 million for the French defender. But keeping in view the importance of the €55m-rated Frenchman in the Barcelona squad, the Catalans might be looking for a greater sum of money if they are to be convinced to part ways with him.

It remains to be seen how this story develops in the coming days, but it is highly unlikely that Barcelona will allow such an important and ‘versatile’ player to leave in the near future.