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The list of transfer "failures" at Liverpool seems to grow by the week, whether or not a failure has actually taken place. Memphis Depay's decision to join Manchester United--one that everyone saw coming--became the latest excuse to rattle off lists of players that didn't join Liverpool and lambast the transfer committee, a topic about which there has been much angst and hand-wringing over the past few years. Some deals happen, some don't, but the constant, at least according to the narrative, is the Liverpool can't complete a transfer unless it's placed in their lap.
One name that's been lumped into the list of failures without much though is Yehven Konoplyanka, who was on the verge of joining Liverpool in January of 2014. The club had met the player's buyout clause of £16m and had medical staff in Ukraine to help finalize the deal, but Dnipro president Ihor Kolomoyskyi wouldn't sign the paperwork. Liverpool, by all accounts, did everything possible to sign the player, and in most other circumstances would have, but Kolomyskyi's refusal to sign off prevented Brendan Rodgers and Liverpool from doing so.
So while he didn't arrive, that deal doesn't fall in line with the other "failures" everyone is so quick to include in their listicles and slideshows. It's one that should have been completed, and one that, according to the player, is a source of regret. Speaking ahead of their Europa League final against Sevilla, Konoplyanka briefly addressed the collapse of the move, stating, "I am sorry I didn't join Liverpool when they wanted me but this Europa League final will help me get over that."
There's still a chance of the move happening, as Konoplyanka is widely expected to leave Dnipro this summer after his contract expires. Liverpool have found themselves linked once again, along with the likes of Spurs, Everton, West Ham, and a host of clubs abroad. Given their history Liverpool might have the edge if their interest is genuine, but there's been little discussion of continued efforts on the club's side to revisit the deal other than some brief rumor mongering last month.
As was the case then, it would be a solid signing from a squad depth perspective, and obviously one that wouldn't cost anything up front. Wages would be sensible, and he's young enough that he'd have a part to play for a few seasons if his form from his Dnipro days held up after the move abroad. For now, though, it's idle chatter, and not enough to qualify as anything solid.
Probably enough to make it a failure if it doesn't happen, though.
