Years after admitting he wished he had joined Liverpool from Monaco, Thomas Lemar of Atletico Madrid might be available once more.
Remember that incredible Monaco team from 2016–17?
For the Ligue 1 team, players like Fabinho, Bernardo Silva, Tiemoue Bakayoko, and Kylian Mbappe were all excelling.
Naturally, they were all eventually signed by other European teams and have had a mixed careers.
While Fabinho, Bernardo, and Mbappe have all achieved success, Bakayoko has never quite lived up to expectations.
THOMAS LEMAR COULD BE AVAILABLE FOR LIVERPOOL AGAIN
Then there is Thomas Lemar, who sort of occupies the middle ground.
Lemar, who was purchased by Atletico Madrid in 2018 for a staggering €72 million (£63 million), was envisioned as a star in Spain.
Lemar hasn’t been terrible, but he also hasn’t been what Atletico thought they were getting when they signed him.
Lemar has only scored nine goals and 19 assists in 154 appearances for Atletico; in 27 fewer games for Monaco, he managed to score 13 more goals and provide 14 more assists.
Lemar has been used as a winger, a midfielder, and even a wing back, but he hasn’t quite lived up to the high hopes in the Spanish city.
We are currently in a situation where Lemar, who will be 27 years old next summer, is only a few months away from becoming a free agent.
There is little information regarding a new contract, and earlier this month, Mundo Deportivo reported that Atletico may now let Lemar go in January.
After losing in the first round of the Champions League, Atletico needs money, and Lemar might be sold.
This could bring Liverpool back into the conversation.
Lemar was so desperately sought by the Reds in 2017 that Liverpool dispatched a medical team to France to evaluate him in case they made a late bid.
Lemar was left feeling regretful when Monaco abruptly increased their asking price to £90 million and Liverpool withdrew.
Lemar was cited as saying that he regretted not pressing for the deal and was sad that his move to Liverpool fell through.
Liverpool is now looking for a midfielder, and it appears that they would prefer a less expensive alternative in January before making a bid for Jude Bellingham in the summer.
Although Konrad Laimer has been mentioned, Lemar offers another intriguing alternative for a player whose contract is about to expire.
Lemar, 27, has always been a favorite of Liverpool. Although it didn’t work out for him in Spain, he still possesses quality in a more expansive style than Diego Simeone permits.
Liverpool could do much worse than finally bringing Lemar to Anfield if they can obtain a significant discount on the £63 million Atletico paid (we’re talking £10 million or less here).
Why Thomas Lemar Didn’t Join Liverpool Before Atlético Madrid Move
It is impossible to imagine a scenario in which Liverpool fails to land their target given their nosebleed-worthy rise to the top of the league over the past few years, which was supported by some of the finest transfer activity ever witnessed in the Premier League.While deals for Andy
Robertson, Virgil van Dijk, Mohamed Salah, and a host of others have been wildly successful, they notoriously failed to sign Nabil Fekir from Lyon in 2018.
A 2017 approach for then-Monaco attacker Thomas Lemar was slightly less well-known but still significant at the time. The Frenchman was expected to be the fourth big acquisition of the window, which is known for being the beginning of the Jurgen Klopp era. However, the Reds ultimately had to make do with Salah, Robertson, and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.
Uncertain contradicting sources suggested that Arsenal had moved to the head of the line, while others stated that Monaco just didn’t want to sell, so it was unclear why the Lemar deal didn’t materialize in the 2017 transfer window.
But according to James Pearce of The Athletic, who has been outlining a number of acquisitions that never materialized at Anfield, the transfer was finally derailed by Monaco’s inconsistent stance on their asking price.
He asserts that Liverpool tried their hardest to sign the player but were unsuccessful despite their efforts. The fact that the player was away serving in France while negotiations were ongoing hampered the transaction, but it is reported that members of Liverpool’s medical staff joined him there to complete a medical if a deal could be reached.
However, after two separate bids worth £55m and £64m were rejected, it proved to be unattainable. Monaco hiked the price up to £90m at the last minute after Arsenal’s interest gave them hope of a bidding wаг, and he eventually stayed at Monaco for the season ahead.
He would join Atlético Madrid one year later, for £3m less than Liverpool’s lowest offer.
If that fact doesn’t justify the current European champions’ refusal to negotiate further, however, then their progress since certainly has. Their front three of Salah, Sadio Mané and Roberto Firmino has developed into a formidable force, with even the later departure of Philippe Coutinho failing to knock them off their stride.