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Ah, late December. When other leagues around Europe take a break, and journalists (and “journalists”) across the continent turn their attention to the upcoming transfer window. Step right up Napoli attacker Lorenzo Insigne, you’ve been linked to Liverpool!
Now, of all the places Liverpool could conceivably strengthen over the winter transfer window (takes a quick, disconcerting look at our two healthy center backs), attack probably isn’t the top priority. But that’s not stopping “in the know” bookmakers from slashing the odds of an Insigne move to Liverpool from 10/1 to 7/1, which is apparently enough for a story.
This move seems unlikely, but if you squint at it long enough you might be able to talk yourself into it.
Insigne is 27 years old, which is probably a wee bit on the high side given Liverpool’s recent spending history. However, if Klopp and Co. are looking to strengthen now for their league and Champions League run-in, they could do worse. He has 10 goals (one of which, memorably, came against us) and 5 assists in Serie A and Champions League, or a goal or assist every 107.6 minutes. He can play centrally or on the left, potentially giving cover for Sadio Mane.
Additionally, new UEFA rules no longer cup tie players to international competitions, so he would be free to play Champions League knockout in Red.
So that’s all well and good, but it still seems unlikely. Insigne has played nearly his entire senior career at Napoli. He signed with the Serie A outfit in 2006 at just 15 years old, and—following a couple of loan spells—has been part of the first team set up since 2012/13. Despite getting bounced from the Champions League (soz), Napoli are still enjoying a good season, and will be considered one of the favorites to win the Europa League.
Moreover, Klopp has already gone on record—several times—that he’s probably not going to make any January moves. The fact that this rumor seems to stem merely from odds fluctuations, and not from club-connected journalists, only makes it seem all the more unlikely.