{"id":61572,"date":"2026-07-27T15:16:22","date_gmt":"2026-07-27T15:16:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/61572\/"},"modified":"2026-07-27T15:16:22","modified_gmt":"2026-07-27T15:16:22","slug":"liverpool-have-eight-diomande-back-ups-including-real-quartet-and-qpr-gamble","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/61572\/","title":{"rendered":"Liverpool have eight Diomande back-ups, including Real quartet and QPR ‘gamble’"},"content":{"rendered":"

Liverpool<\/a> need to \u2018win\u2019 the next transfer after losing Yan Diomande to Real Madrid, who offer four of eight potential targets for the Reds.<\/p>\n

Send your thoughts to theeditor@football365.com.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Vini vidi vici<\/p>\n

Vini Jr to Arsenal<\/a>? Managed by Mikel \u2018trying to handle Auba and \u00d6zil made me wee my grey slacks\/I see attacking football as the eighth deadly sin\u2019 Arteta? F**k yes please.<\/p>\n

Watching them falling apart as Ickle Mikel comes slowly to the realisation he is but a mere polyp on the anus of Vini Jr\u2019s planet sized ego will be hilarious. Have they got Amazon in this year? Imagine Vini\u2019s face when Mr Charisma breaks out the whiteboard.
RHT\/TS x (Love it when folk send in their big \u201cI\u2019m a football analyst\u201d audition \u2013 did you ever consider Xabi Alonso might not be wedded to one style Esco Pablavar IV?)<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Back-up Yan<\/p>\n

If Real Madrid beat Liverpool to Yan Diomand\u00e9<\/a>, Liverpool shouldn\u2019t panic. They should ask Madrid a different question:\u00a0who becomes available?<\/p>\n

Adding Diomand\u00e9 to an already ridiculous collection of attacking talent inevitably squeezes somebody out.<\/p>\n

Arda G\u00fcler\u00a0would be the most intriguing. Left-footed, technically exceptional and comfortable starting from the right before drifting inside, he could become a creative focal point under Andoni Iraola. He isn\u2019t Salah 2.0 \u2014 but Liverpool shouldn\u2019t necessarily be looking for one.<\/p>\n

Rodrygo\u00a0is the safer option. At 25, he\u2019s proven at the highest level, quick, direct and capable of scoring from wide areas. Give him a permanent role rather than continually asking him to accommodate Madrid\u2019s latest superstar and Liverpool might finally see his best football.<\/p>\n

Franco Mastantuono\u00a0is the gamble. Just 18, left-footed and naturally suited to the right, his ceiling is enormous. Madrid won\u2019t want to sell, but Diomand\u00e9 arriving would at least make the phone call worthwhile.<\/p>\n

Brahim D\u00edaz\u00a0is less spectacular but potentially excellent value: technically gifted, experienced and capable of playing wide or centrally.<\/p>\n

But Liverpool shouldn\u2019t restrict themselves to Madrid.<\/p>\n

Maghnes Akliouche\u00a0at Monaco has the profile Liverpool traditionally love<\/a>: technically excellent, left-footed, comfortable from the right and approaching his prime without yet carrying superstar pricing.<\/p>\n

Yankuba Minteh\u00a0offers Premier League experience, frightening pace and direct running \u2014 attributes that look particularly attractive in an Iraola attack.<\/p>\n

And then there is the Championship.<\/p>\n

Million Manhoef\u00a0at Stoke is worth serious scouting. A powerful, left-footed right winger, he produced seven goals and four assists last season and already possesses the physicality required for English football.<\/p>\n

Karamoko Demb\u00e9l\u00e9\u00a0at QPR is a much bigger gamble. The former Celtic wonderkid still has exceptional close control and carries the ball beautifully, although one goal and no assists in last season\u2019s Championship campaign shows just how much development would be required.<\/p>\n

Liverpool could even go further left-field and scout the best 18\u201321-year-old wide players across the Championship with a view to buying\u00a0two attackers rather than one \u00a3100m superstar.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s the real point.<\/p>\n

If Madrid take Diomand\u00e9, don\u2019t chase them into an auction.<\/p>\n

G\u00fcler offers genius. Rodrygo offers certainty. Mastantuono offers potential. Akliouche offers the middle ground. And somewhere below the \u00a3100m market may be the next Diomand\u00e9 before everybody knows his name.<\/p>\n

Liverpool don\u2019t need to win the Diomand\u00e9 transfer.<\/p>\n

They need to win the transfer that comes next.
Esco Pablabar IV<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Top Marcs<\/p>\n

Looks like Man UTD is stuck with Rashford now; 2 more years and those high wages. But the more immediate danger is once again introducing his attitude and side-show to a squad who looked settled and in harmony last year.<\/p>\n

You can\u2019t really blame Barca though. There is precedence that Rashford plays great the season he wants a fat new contract. Done it 2 times in United already. Even though, he was decent last year, Barca choosing Gordon instead makes sense. Gordon\u2019s younger and they probably liked his hunger and attitude better.<\/p>\n

Just look at how Cunha and Mbuemo went about playing last year. Rashford hasn\u2019t played with anything like that kind of verve for good few seasons and those widespread criticisms of his attitude are not really blown out of proportion.<\/p>\n

Any team willing to offer him a chance, he should be willing to grab it with both hands. Because what will happen after his contract expires in 2 years? Best he can hope for is mid-table premiere league. Or MLS. Or Saudi.<\/p>\n

The sooner he realizes he\u2019s not above compromise for his next move and he\u2019s not all that, the better.
Karen Asad<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Busquets case<\/p>\n

I was reading this site\u2019s ranking of Manchester United\u2019s central midfielders<\/a> and, for the most part, I agreed with the player they put at No. 1. My only caveat is that we signed him when he was already at the mercenary stage of his career.<\/p>\n

That said, for one glorious season he was football\u2019s version of Deathstroke. When he was on it, he was absolutely on it. As a defensive midfielder, he dominated games, broke up attacks with ease, controlled transitions and reminded everyone why he\u2019d been regarded as one of the best in the world.<\/p>\n

Buuuuutttt, If we\u2019re talking about the player United SHOULD really have signed to succeed Michael Carrick, though, my answer will always be a peak Sergio Busquets<\/a> (yes, I know, a man can only dream).<\/p>\n

He would have transformed that midfield. Busquets wasn\u2019t just a holding midfielder; he was the complete package. Elite positioning, press resistance, passing range, intelligence and composure. He had everything you\u2019d want in a No. 6. And, let\u2019s be honest, even his trademark sh*thousery would have added a ruthless edge that United have lacked for years.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ll never know how it would have turned out, but of all the \u201cwhat if?\u201d signings in the my life as a fan, Busquets to United remains my favourite fantasy.
Gaptoothfreak,\u00a0 Man. Utd., New York (Signing Wesley Sneijder was once a fantasy)<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

The final reckoning is coming<\/p>\n

As recent mails make clear, we\u2019ve clearly reached the stage in the Man City narrative where either Chris Nolan makes a film about it or the Proclaimers write a support song ( \u2018And I would break one hundred and fifteen rules, and I would break one hundred and fifteen more, just to be the club\u2026\u2019 Out, now.). It must be an inflection point one way or t\u2019other<\/a>, though.<\/p>\n

When the new season begins in \u2013 checks Bugs Bunny wall calendar \u2013 26 days, the Premier League will have discarded the PSR framework in favour of the new Squad Cost Ratio (SCR). One of the core principles of this new system is real time adjudication and punishment. There will be in-season checks of various financial and activity markers, meaning naughty clubs get fines and really naughty clubs get point deductions immediately. What sense then would it make to deliver these judgements to transgressors of the cool new rules while continuing to delay justice (either way) for City?<\/p>\n

Overall, the SCR approach\u00a0seems quite sensible, transparent and equitable. It needs to be\u00a0introduced in a manner which suggests the League itself is similarly\u00a0endowed. Failing to wrap up old nonsense before heralding this New World Order would be a ridiculous self-own.
King Rat, Retired pebble-collector, Spaceville<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

Hande hoch<\/p>\n

Given the prevalence of grappling at corners in the World Cup, I can only assume it will be more of the same once the domestic season starts. Worse still, I fear we will see more of it rather than less. Whilst this \u201cdisease\u201d has yet to reach epidemic proportions, it has set a precedent that, if not addressed, will eventually change Football into simply playing for corners so as to exploit these set pieces. Something needs to be done, sooner rather than later.<\/p>\n

One could argue that Referees have allowed this to get worse by not being tougher and issuing a few more yellow cards, but how are they expected to watch everyone?<\/p>\n

The loophole that teams are exploiting is that before the kick is taken, the ball is not live, so unless a defender does a \u201cParedes\u201d and strikes a blow, the Referee is limited in their powers. Sure they could hand out dozens of yellow cards but they usually save that for more clinical offences when the ball is in play.<\/p>\n

What if, instead, we tried to modify the offending behavior instead? It hasn\u2019t taken long for defenders to learn to keep their arms by their sides when defending in the box, so they CAN learn new tricks! So, what if defenders were required to hold their hands in the air before the corner was taken? I believe this could work for the following reasons:<\/p>\n

It would be much easier for the Referee to see which defenders do NOT have their hands in the air so they do not have to watch everyone all the time<\/p>\n

Once the attacker can start their run unimpeded, any subsequent egregious grappling could constitute a penalty offense as the ball is in play<\/p>\n

Once the attacker does start their run, the defender will also need to start their run and their hands will naturally come down<\/p>\n

I\u2019m not saying this is the solution, or even if it is a viable one but surely it is time for us to be thinking creatively about how to address this before teams consist entirely of Goliaths taking corners.
Adidasmufc (On a mission to save the artists from the artisans)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Liverpool need to \u2018win\u2019 the next transfer after losing Yan Diomande to Real Madrid, who offer four of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":61573,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[4066,1707,2758,1818,82,14359,273,4298,5384],"class_list":["post-61572","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-madrid","tag-f365-features","tag-front-page","tag-home-page","tag-liverpool","tag-madrid","tag-mailbox","tag-news","tag-popular","tag-yan-diomande"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61572","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=61572"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61572\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/61573"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=61572"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=61572"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=61572"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}