Liverpool could repeat history with signing that would be similar to our genius Salah business

He just absolutely screams of a Klopp-esque signing

Whisper it to a friend, maybe a handful if you’re feeling brave, but Renato Sanches could be a brilliant potential Liverpool signing.

At risk of emulating the kind of overly enthusiastic, grandiose statement typically reserved for excitable pundits, bringing the Portuguese star to Anfield would bear a lot of the hallmarks of a rather brilliant bit of business conducted in the summer of 2017.

We are, of course, referring to the £34m signing of then Roma star Mohamed Salah, which, in hindsight, was practically daylight robbery given that he’s now worth at least triple that amount.

With Georginio Wijnaldum having departed on a free transfer, a lucrative contract with PSG all arranged, another opportunity has opened for Liverpool to do it all again.

Not ignoring his significant contributions at club level for Ligue 1’s surprise champions Lille, the European Championship has once again handed Sanches a platform to display his talents internationally for all to witness.

As far as former Liverpool fullback Jose Enrique is concerned, the competition has highlighted the Portugal international as the ideal replacement for our ex-No.5.

“This is the man I want to replace Gini. He steps up on the big stage. Still only 23 & he just won the league with Lille,” the 35-year-old declared on his Instagram page a day after Sanches’ excellent outing against France. “This man is an absolute engine & knows how to dictate a midfield like Gini did. He’s physically a level above others, he seems like a perfect fit for Klopp. He also has that creative aspect which Gini had.”

Not to say that the Spaniard’s words should be taken as gospel with regard to our likely potential targets, but the advice is certainly worth considering.

A diamond in the rough, a Premier League-flop (that is if you count his spell at Swansea City), available for a potential bargain fee…

Come on!

Sanches just screams of a Jurgen Klopp-esque signing, and if Ligue 1 is still struggling to come to terms with the financial ramifications of COVID-19, then we should aim to take advantage while the No.18’s price tag is likely to be kept reasonably low.

That all being said, stylistically you wouldn’t compare the former Benfica prodigy too closely with Wijnaldum (then again, when we first signed the Dutchman, you probably wouldn’t have compared the formerly goal-centric midfielder then to the player he later became under Klopp).

In light of the injury-heavy season we were forced to endure last term, it’s likewise difficult to ignore that 2016’s European Golden Boy was sidelined for a considerable proportion of an otherwise largely blemish-free season in the French top-flight this year.

Injuries have been a consistent theme of Sanches’ career of late, which is not what many fans will want to hear, particularly given that we’ve just lost a midfielder who didn’t miss a single league game last year whilst everyone else around him dropped like flies.

How the 23-year-old would fare in a more physical, demanding league like the English top-flight is certainly a thought that will have crossed everyone’s minds by now, and for good reason.

That’s not to say the recruitment team should be chucking out his dossier just yet, but it’s a thought that will be difficult to shake off when considering how best to address the loss of reliability in the middle of the park for Liverpool.

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