One Liverpool player has been advised by his national team boss to consider moving on from Anfield in the near future if his prospects of game-time are bleak.
The two-month injury absence of Alisson Becker gave Caoimhin Kelleher a sustained run of starts for the Reds during the autumn, prior to our number 1 returning for last week’s Champions League win against Girona.
The 26-year-old has already had numerous pundits imploring him to find a new club if he can’t hold down a place in Arne Slot’s starting XI, and his international coach has now weighed in on the matter.
Republic of Ireland manager Heimir Hallgrimsson has said that he wants his players to enjoy regular minutes and has urged Kelleher to seek a way out of Liverpool if such game-time isn’t forthcoming.
The 57-year-old said (via Irish Examiner): “I will answer this question the same way whoever it is; as a national team coach, you would always like to see your players playing. Whether it’s Evan [Ferguson, Brighton striker] or someone else, it’s our preference. We would like our players to play.
“[It’s] the same with Caoimhin. We don’t know if he’s going to play games for Liverpool even though he’s done brilliantly. Should he go and try to play somewhere else?
“It applies to everyone. For a national team coach, of course you would like your players to be playing all the time.”
Kelleher deserves enormous praise on two fronts – the performances he’s put in for Liverpool this season, and the patience he’s shown in staying with the Reds despite consistently having to bide his time behind Alisson.
Nottingham Forest made a late August attempt to get him out of Anfield, but their offer was scandalously low and unsurprisingly rejected out of hand. With the Irishman having starred for the Premier League leaders since then, we suspect that any bids for him in 2025 would need to start at £30m.
At 26 and having proven his worth at a high level, we’d understand completely if he’s no longer content with playing second fiddle on Merseyside, and Giorgi Mamardashvili’s arrival from Valencia next summer provides further competition for a starting berth.
Kelleher hasn’t been shy about wanting to play more regularly, and his performances over the past couple of months may well have a queue of suitors waiting to snap him up if he continues to be frustrated at Liverpool.
The prospect of an exit from Anfield in 2025 looks increasingly plausible, and while we’d hate to lose such an outstanding goalkeeper, the one positive for the Reds is that they should be able to entice a sizeable transfer fee for him if he’s to be sold.
The post ‘We would like…’ – Liverpool player’s national team boss urges him to consider Anfield exit appeared first on The Empire of The Kop.
