Former Liverpool winger Vladimir Smicer has warned against making a blockbuster move for RB Leipzig’s Yan Diomande this summer. And the 2005 Champions League feels a fee upwards of £85m is a huge risk for a 19-year-old with just one Bundesliga season’s worth of experience. Liverpool have been in negotiations with RB Leipzig over Diomande for a number of weeks and stepped up their interest in recent days by making it known they are ready to commit to a package worth up to £86m for
the 19-year-old. Leipzig are reluctant to sell and want a fee of around £112m for the Ivory Coast winger and Smicer feels such fees come with big pressure for players who are still inexperienced. “I would be careful with the price of Diomande because he only played one year in Germany,” Smicer told Casinostugan . “Of course, he’s 19 and is showing good things. Maybe in your head it’s better to buy him now for £50m than in two years for £150m. But he’s only
had one season. “We need a strong winger with pace, which is what we were missing this season. We’ll be missing Salah next season, so we need a replacement for that kind of player. “It was a pity that Antoine Semenyo went to Bournemouth and then chose Manchester City, because I saw him as a good player for our team; he is the one that got away.” Liverpool appointed Andoni Iraola on a two-year deal earlier this month after Arne Slot was relieved of his
duties on May 30 following a disappointing campaign that saw the Reds limp home to a fifth-placed finish on the final day of the Premier League term. Smicer, who made 184 appearances between 1999 and 2005, added: “Andoni Iraola, he is a very highly rated manager. “At Bournemouth they sold their best players every season, but it didn’t change the spirit of the team. “They still played the same way. He was able to replace those missing players and every year he improved the team.
“This is the attribute that you want to see in your team. The players and the team are getting better and better, even with players who are not like star players. “It’s going to be a great challenge for Andoni Iraola to go to Liverpool and do the same thing. I think some of the players were in a bit of a comfort zone this season. “We won the league and thought everything was going to be okay. We got new players and I felt
like we were not getting the best out of them. I think Iraola, with the way he was managing Bournemouth, can get that. “I think he will be much harder on the players, probably demanding different things, and if they won’t be doing those things, they won’t be playing. It doesn’t matter the name. “If the players approach the manager that way and the manager approaches the players this way, it could be good for Liverpool.” FOLLOW OUR LIVERPOOL FC FACEBOOK PAGE! All the latest
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Liverpool, Yan Diomande, RB Leipzig, Vladimir Smicer, Andoni Iraola, Arne Slot, Premier League, transfer news
£86m for a 19-year-old?? That’s wild.
Smicer said one Bundesliga season and people still want to pay like he’s already Salah level. Feels like another panic buy to me.
Idk why Liverpool keep doing this, like if he’s good you pay later, right? Also if they’re “missing Salah” doesn’t that mean they should be replacing the whole squad not just one winger? Smicer bringing up Semenyo too like that fixes it.
So Leipzig wants £112m but Liverpool offer £86m, and everyone acts like it’s normal. I swear in soccer transfers they just throw numbers out until someone clicks “buy.” And 19-year-old with one season in Germany… okay but most stars didn’t start in the Premier League anyway. Smicer also talking about Salah next season like Salah is definitely gone? People say “one year in Germany” but Diomande’s probably been training 5 years already lol.