Liverpool End Their Interest In Roma’s Alisson

It’s all not happening. Just as we sit down to the news that Liverpool have made contact with the representatives of Roma’s goalkeeper Alisson about a summer transfer, another turn of the page reveals that Jürgen Klopp doesn’t intend to take his interest in the Brazilian shot-stopper any further.

We don’t know how far along any discussions were regarding Alisson and Roma but it appears that the eye-watering £70million price tag that Roma would demand for the player may have been a slight factor in Liverpool walking away. That’s big money for a goalkeeper and there’s speculation that Klopp and company may suspect Roma are inflating Alisson’s fee in an effort to save some face after having let the great and powerful Mohamed Salah go last summer for a paltry £37million.

But there’s another factor that Klopp is considering in any future goalkeeper business and that’s the potential and hopeful rise of Loris Karius. Liverpool’s German keeper was given the keys to the six-yard box and has represented himself well since taking over after a string of less than stellar performances by Simon Mignolet.

If Karius indeed does elevate his game to the standards required of a title-challenging side then the big gloves are his to lose as far as the manager is concerned.

“My favorite solution, always, is that we do it with our boys,” said Klopp.

“They step up. They deliver. They improve. The problem they have is that everyone is watching them.”

Jürgen Klopp is frequently critical of the media’s and supporters’ scrutiny of his team. And the manager often uses his time in front of the cameras to show his contempt for anyone who is quick to trash a player for being unfortunately out of form. But that’s the job now for modern players. Everyone is watching and you still have to perform.

Loris Karius has taken his lumps already, coming into the side early on and looking mostly unimpressive. He was quickly replaced by the Mignolet and it’s been a slow climb for the German ever since.

But recent performances suggest to the manager that Karius is playing with confidence again and a massive outlay for Alisson or any other keeper just isn’t necessary. Time will tell, of course, if Karius is the next king between the sticks but the current message from Klopp is a complete backing of his new number one. The position is Karius’ to lose for now and if the German turns his three clean sheets in four games into a run of unstoppability Liverpool will not seek out a replacement in the summer.

With Mignolet expected to move on at the end of the season, Liverpool are now looking towards a future where they only need to find a player to compete with and push Karius on.