Liverpool are reportedly closing in on a deal to sign Giorgi Mamardashvili from Valencia, and it seems that he isn’t the only goalkeeper in LaLiga who’s of interest to the Reds.
According to Mundo Deportivo, Liverpool are ‘keeping a close eye’ on Espanyol’s Joan Garcia in an apparent attempt to hijack Arsenal’s plans to sign the 23-year-old, who’s reported to have made a verbal agreement with the Gunners.
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The ‘keeper has a release clause of €30m (£25.6m) at the RCDE Stadium, although his club insist that they haven’t received any proposals for him or had any communication with his representatives.
Las claves del futuro de Joan García
El Arsenal, con el que habría alcanzado un acuerdo, no es el único equipo que va tras sus pasos
El Liverpool también le sigue de cerca, mientras que el Girona presentó una oferta hace un mes
@sergio21escario #RCDE… pic.twitter.com/peUyNWAsCO
— Mundo Deportivo (@mundodeportivo) August 20, 2024
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Liverpool’s reported interest in Garcia would indicate that they have a succession plan not just for Alisson Becker (Mamardashvili), but also for a backup goalkeeper if Caoimhin Kelleher were to depart.
The Spaniard won a gold medal at the recent Olympic Games with his nation and was instrumental in Espanyol winning promotion back to the top flight earlier this year. In 21 games for the club last season, he conceded just 10 goals (0.48 per match) and kept 12 clean sheets, a superb shutout rate of 57% (Transfermarkt).
Those numbers are bound to pan out rather differently with his team now in LaLiga – indeed, they lost their opening match 1-0 to Real Valladolid on Monday – but it’s still a fantastic return from the 23-year-old.
We wouldn’t be pushing Kelleher out the door just to get in Garcia, although the latter arriving would go some way to atoning for the Irishman’s prospective departure, with our second-choice ‘keeper now into the final two years of his Liverpool contract and unlikely to sign a new deal if he continues to be overlooked.
In any case, it would seem that we’d have to outmanoeuvre Arsenal to beat them to the punch for the Espanyol stopper’s signature, although it’d be immensely satisfying to pinch him from under the noses of a direct Premier League rival.
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