Yesterday marked a busy day in the Liverpool calendar with plenty of talks and rumoured deals flying through the air with Liverpool finally landing two new centre-backs to try and push towards retaining the Premier League title.
Not long after the agreement over a deal for Preston North Ends Ben Davies, the news surged over the Reds attempting to sign a second central defender – which quickly turned into an official bid from the club for Marseille’s Croatian defender Duje Caleta-Car who had quickly been linked with a move to Merseyside.
Liverpool had reportedly lodged a bid in the region of €23 million for the centre-back which was turned down by the French club despite positive initial talks due to Marseille having concerns as to whether they would be able to secure a replacement for Caleta-Car before the deadline last night and they eventually pulled the plug as reported by RMC Sport’s Mohamed Bouhafsi…
He will end the season with OM. OM refused 23 million euros from Liverpool. no departure https://t.co/G03jxmtvqx
— Mohamed Bouhafsi (@mohamedbouhafsi) February 1, 2021
The Croatian defender had been set for a move to Anfield and was keen to join the champions but with Marseille pulling the plug on the deal and him now remaining at the French club for the rest of the season – it seems as though his big chance may have passed him by.
It is a shame really – the defender has decent numbers behind him this season and has averaged 0.7 tackles, 1.6 interceptions, and 4.1 clearances per game. Not only that but Caleta-Car has even managed two goals and an assist in Ligue 1 this campaign and shows a real aerial presence standing at 6ft4 and averaging 2.5 aerial duels won per game.
Did Liverpool have a successful January window?
Yes
No
Whether the Reds go back for the defender in the summer is unknown but I don’t doubt his talent and ability in defence – so it will be interesting to see how he does with Marseille for the remainder of the campaign given his desire to move to Anfield was squashed by his current club.
What do you think Liverpool fans, would you have liked the club to sign Caleta-Car? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section down below…