Rumour Mongering: Liverpool Target Relegation Fated Sheffield Midfielder

When Liverpool faced Genk in the Champions League group stages in 2019, one player stood out for the Reds’ opponents. While Liverpool may have won both games, midfielder Sander Berge impressed—and the result was plenty of transfer speculation.

In the end, though, when Berge did move on from the Belgian side, it was to join Sheffield United in January of 2020 in a £22M deal. A year and a half later, and the now 23-year-old is set to drop down to the Championship with the relegation fated side.

Which, perhaps inevitably given Liverpool’s rumoured past interest and history of poaching players from relegated sides, is leading to a revival of Liverpool rumours, with Belgian outlet Voetbal24 leading the way claiming Jürgen Klopp has made him a top target.

Berge had a solid first six months with The Blades, but it would be hard to point to a player at the South Yorkshire club who has looked good this season, including Berge—and that makes it rather difficult to get a read on the latest transfer chatter.

Based on his Sheffield output, it would be difficult to suggest Berge is worth more now than when he signed for the club mid-way through the 2019-20 season, yet given the recentness of that deal it seems unlikely Sheffield would be willing to take a loss on him.

As such, it’s hard to see the potential value from Liverpool’s perspective, especially at a time when finances remain impacted by the ongoing global pandemic and there will likely be bigger transfer priorities for the club at forward and in defence.