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The Man United legend claims the Premier League champions could
suffer a drop-off without the Bayern Munich star
By this point, every Liverpool supporter has read every Thiago
Alcantara-related tweet from every transfer ITK and watched every
Thiago Alcantara YouTube compilation in anticipation of Michael
Edwards coming through to sign Bayern Munich star.
It is well-known that Liverpool’s commitment to financial
sustainability in a period of unprecedented uncertainty has placed
constraints on the club’s willingness to sanction even relatively
modest outlays. This has put a mooted €30m price tag Bayern have
placed on the 29-year-old out of reach for Edwards, leaving the two
clubs at an impasse.
However, getting a deal over the line would be massive statement
of intent, says Sky Sports pundit, Gary Neville. As a player, he
was a part of a Manchester United structure in which Sir Alex Ferguson regularly refreshed the squad
makeup from a position of strength, preferring to get rid of a
player too early rather than too late.
“It wouldn’t be ridiculous to suggest there will be a slight
drop-off, if they don’t somehow stimulate that squad by doing
something,” Neville said of Liverpool’s lack of major transfers
thus far.
“It is a huge emotional drain on the group of players for three
years.
“To ask them to go again and achieve that same standard would be
a superhuman effort, getting them to do the same thing without
amendment to the squad to give them that lift again.
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Liverpool’s rivals have chosen to ignore the financial risks of
spending in a pandemic, with the likes of Chelsea and Manchester City making splashy moves. Of course,
Liverpool only just got done winning the Premier League title by a
ridiculous 18 points in capping off a trophy-laden two-year period
of success and still possess the strength to repeat the feat again
this season. However, Neville argues that signing a star like the
ex-Barcelona man is just as important for the resolve of the squad
as it is for the performances on the pitch.
“That is where signing Thiago would give the big one to
Liverpool—to send a message to the rest of the players that we’ve
signed one of the best players in the world in that position.”
“He is world class and that would give them a world-class
presence in an area of the field where they don’t have a
world-class presence,” he added.
“They need that impetus to stay where they are.
“I could be wrong—they could deliver exactly what they did
before—but looking at history it doesn’t work like that
usually.”