Liverpool should watch for scouting clue as Dominik Szoboszlai funds $42m transfer
RB Leipzig is about to sign Loïs Openda using the funds raised from Dominik Szoboszlai’s summer sale to Liverpool, with Jürgen Klopp likely to take note from afar.
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This week, Dominik Szoboszlai arrived on Merseyside to train with his new Liverpool teammates for the first time. The captain of Hungary was signed by the Reds this summer as a means of regenerating Jürgen Klopp’s tired and aging midfield department, signing a five-year contract.
Szoboszlai will provide Liverpool with an overdue boost in the middle of the park next season and beyond, as he seems to be the perfect sort of player to address the void. The 22-year-old midfielder is physical, intense, creative, and technical, and he possesses enough potential to reach the pinnacle of the sport in the coming years.
Indeed, Szoboszlai isn’t the first player to join Liverpool from a club under the Red Bull umbrella. Naby Keïta, Ibrahima Konaté, Sadio Mané and Takumi Minamino all passed through the energy drink company’s famous network before making the switch to Anfield, with Szoboszlai the latest player to follow suit.
RB Leipzig and Red Bull Salzburg are the two clubs operating under the Red Bull wing in Europe. Liverpool tends to poach the biggest stars from both institutions in the transfer market, simply because the players representing the two clubs usually showcase the necessary qualities to perform well under Klopp.
The stereotypical Red Bull player tends to personify the core values of the energy drink in many ways. The talents playing in Salzburg and Leipzig are typically fast, direct, physical, energetic and youthful. They are usually tactically intelligent with a tendency to thrive on the counter-attack, and pressing is ingrained into their games.
It makes plenty of sense for Liverpool to target the brightest stars from within the Red Bull network, which is why RB Leipzig’s latest move is interesting. With the funds for Szoboszlai now available to be spent in the market, the Bundesliga outfit is investing heavily in the next big thing.
Right now, RB Leipzig is chasing the signature of a player by the name of Loïs Openda. The Belgian is not a direct replacement for Szoboszlai — as the two players occupy different positions in the final third — but his signature looks like an exciting one and his development could be worth tracking.
According to German publication Kicker (via BuliNews), RB Leipzig has reached an agreement to bring Openda to Klopp’s homeland, with his signature costing a base transfer fee of $42m (£33m/€38m).
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Liverpool isn’t in need of a new attacker at the moment. Klopp is stacked for options up front, but it remains to be seen what will happen in the near future, especially considering Mohamed Salah has a contract that is due to expire in two years, now aged 31. The Reds are always keeping an eye on the market, which is why Openda could become an option further down the line.
The 23-year-old forward has just experienced a momentous season with Lens. The French side finished seventh in the table in 2021/22 but last term, Openda managed to finish second in the table with his team — behind only Paris Saint-Germain — with his ability to find the net being one of the primary reasons behind his success.
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