Liverpool continue to scour the market for the right signings to make for Arne Slot.
The Reds are preparing to officially welcome Slot, with his contract set to begin on Saturday. He’ll have plenty to be getting on with.
New sporting director Richard Hughes is also due to start his Liverpool career this weekend, as Michael Edwards returns, too.
The duo are set to be FSG’s dream team in the transfer market. Hughes comes with an excellent reputation, while Edwards’ needs no introduction to Reds fans.
Barely through the door, and it looks like the data guru is already starting to put his fingerprints back on the Liverpool squad.
Bryan Mbeumo being targeted by Liverpool
Despite Jurgen Klopp leaving the club this summer, there is expectation from supporters that Liverpool can kick on again next season.
A lot of that has to do with the faith being put in Edwards’ capability of finding the perfect players to move to Anfield.
Obviously, it takes two to tango and Klopp deserves a huge dollop of credit for slotting new signings into the team and developing them in the way that he did.
But it’s without question that Edwards played his part, too. The golden era in this respect was 2016 – 2018. This is when the majority of Liverpool’s iconic team under Klopp was formed.
Four of those signings – Sadio Mane, Virgil van Dijk, Andy Robertson, Gini Wijnaldum – were all brought in from lower Premier League teams having spent a period of time in the division.
Van Dijk aside, they were all relatively well priced and as a quartet they had room to develop and grow at Liverpool. This is the archetypal Edwards signing.
Following on from that pattern, it looks like FSG’s CEO of football could be about to strike again. Brentford’s Bryan Mbeumo is reportedly on the radar.
Why Bryan Mbeumo is a prime Liverpool signing
Liverpool are reportedly very much in the market for a forward this summer. And while the temptation can be to lean towards glamourous names such as Victor Osimhen perhaps, we know better than to do that.
Instead, the likelihood is that Liverpool will scour the data and go for a player who is steadily improving and looks ready to explode further.
Mbeumo absolutely fits that model. Having now spent three season in the Premier League, he scored eight goals in his debut campaign, nine goals last season and another nine this season. That he did so even with missing 13 games shows the improvement.
It’s also worth pointing out that Mbeumo has spent time honing his skills in the Championship too, something he has in common with another Edwards masterclass signing – Diogo Jota.
Turning 25 this summer, Mbeumo is exactly the age Liverpool like to look at players in. The Cameroon international has just two years left on his deal, meaning there’s a whiff of pressure for Brentford to sell.
So, Premier League proven, in the right age category, not overtly overpriced. Tick, tick, tick. We think this one could really have legs.