Liverpool Reportedly Open Thaigo Talks with Bayern Munich

It’s been impossible for Liverpool fans to ignore the Thiago Alcantara rumours this summer, even if at times it’s been rather hard to figure out how much truth there is to them. Today, though, there is a sign that the 29-year-old Spaniard might really be joining the Reds.

That’s because Bild+, a reliable source for Bayern Munich news, claim today that for the first time Liverpool have made official, formal contact with the Bavarian club. Previously, any transfer talk had only suggested the Reds had only been in contact with Thiago’s agent.

After a solid month of hearing that Thiago was desperate to join the Reds—and wondering if it was all a smokescreen, an effort by the player’s agent to induce somebody else to step up and bid for him—this is the first real, significant movement in the story. Assuming it’s true.

While Bild+ are generally reliable—and certainly more so than Bild or Sportsbild—they aren’t as well connected at Bayern Munich as they once were, and even if this is a story coming from legitimate club sources there remains a chance Liverpool’s name is being used.

For those hoping to see Thiago at Anfield, though, it’s certainly a positive sign that a deal—perhaps one in the €25M range—could be on the horizon. On the flip side, a move to sign Thiago would seem to inevitably mean a senior Liverpool midfielder is set to depart.

Currently, the club have Jordan Henderson, Fabinho, Gini Wijnaldum, James Milner, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Naby Keïta, and Curtis Jones all needing minutes—seven senior players competing for three starting roles and a maximum of three places on the bench.

It’s the deepest part of Liverpool’s squad, and the math of adding an eighth name to the mix simply can’t be made to work if somebody isn’t leaving, whether it’s Wijnaldum—the same age as Thiago and down to the final year of his contract—or somebody else.