As things stand, the only player Liverpool can sign this summer is likely to be someone who won’t be at the club until 2026, and that target is Giorgi Mamardashvili.
Talks with Valencia have stalled but if the offer goes through, the Georgian goalkeeper will join the Mestalla on loan before eventually moving to Anfield for £34m.
It is certainly true that new sporting director Richard Hughes has struggled to meet transfer demand following a quiet summer.
But the delay in signing Mamardashvili to Merseyside cannot be understated. The 6ft 6in goalkeeper is one of the most promising goalkeepers in Europe.
He has attracted a lot of attention for his performances for Georgia at Euro 2024, but Liverpool’s recruitment insiders will have known about the 23-year-old long before that.
With a record spanning over 100 years at Valencia, Mamardashvili has amassed a compelling body of data for the club’s researchers to scrutinise.
Why Mamardashvili is in the spotlight
He joined Valencia from Dinamo Tbilisi in 2021 after loan spells at FC Rustavi and Lokomotiv Tbilisi in Georgia, initially as the fourth goalkeeper.
But he impressed in pre-season and started the season as first-choice, with his loan deal becoming permanent by the end of the year.
After three seasons as a first-team player for Valencia, Mamardashvili has developed into an outstanding goalkeeper, and his dominance in the penalty area has attracted interest from a number of top clubs.
The reason is simple: he is quick off the line, stretches his body well, has excellent agility and reflexes, and his height and reach make him a formidable challenger for crosses.
There is little evidence of his ability on the ball, given the systems adopted by Valencia and Georgia, but in an interview with Anfield Watch, former Dinamo Tbilisi scout Mika Gabechava pointed out that it is an area that needs major improvement.
“In terms of his ability to play with his feet, I have to say he has improved considerably in the last few years, mainly because he has a great goalkeeping coach at Valencia,” said Gabechava.
“Even in his early days at Valencia, he made mistakes and was ineffective in that regard.
“But now you can definitely see him being more comfortable and confident with the ball.”
Those with knowledge of the underlying data have compared his current level of performance to Alisson’s performance before the Brazilian moved from AS Roma to Liverpool for £65 million six years ago.
Succession Planning
At the time, Liverpool were convinced that Allison had proven he was worthy of a world-class contract as a goalkeeper and ranked him above another target, Jan Oblak.
Allison was seen as a game-changer at the club, much like Virgil van Dijk was six months ago, and that belief has been vindicated as the club have now won every trophy possible.
Some supporters are angry that Liverpool are looking to sign another goalkeeper so easily when they have no clear plan to replace their current number one.
In particular, with Caoimhin Kelleher and Viteslav Jaros already in place behind Allison, it is clear that this position is currently the lowest priority for recruitment.
The difficulty in recruiting elite-level number sixes and the lack of progress in extending the contracts of Van Dijk, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Mohamed Salah have highlighted this.
But he deserves credit for taking the initiative to identify Mamardashvili and close the deal in advance, and for gaining valuable experience in the process.
It must be admitted that the idea that Liverpool were not paying attention to other key areas began even before the boardroom changed this summer.
With Michael Edwards returning as part of the Fenway Sports Group and Hughes providing stability in the long-term position of sporting director, a role briefly held by Jorg Schmattke, the club is looking to restore order.
That, along with new manager Arn Slot’s willingness to thoroughly evaluate the squad before making a decision, could explain the lack of activity during the summer transfer window.
And the offer to bring Mamardashvili to Liverpool in 2026, when he will be 26, is the strongest sign yet that they have a succession plan in place.
Allison still has nowhere to go!
But it should not be taken as an imminent departure. Alisson only turns 32 in October and last year told reporters he was “still young as a goalkeeper” and could play well into his late 30s.
He made a perfect start to his seventh season at the club with a clean sheet in Saturday’s 2-0 win over Wexwich. He was only required to make two saves, but he played with the same conviction that has made him one of the best goalkeepers in Liverpool’s history.
Allison has already shown that he is a perfect fit for the new system in the slot. His ball-holding ability has helped in calm build-ups and his raw qualities as a goalkeeper speak for themselves.
There is still a strong argument to be made that the Brazilian national team player is considered the best in the world in his position.
But if the club formally announce an agreement with Valencia this summer, fans will be faced with the sad reality that Alisson will not be with the Reds forever.
Links with the Saudi Professional League continue, and there is still a lingering sense that they will eventually leave the rain-soaked north-west of England.
Goalkeeping chief John Achterberg has also suggested that Alisson could have left the club this summer if Jurgen Klopp had decided to part ways with goalkeeping coach Claudio Taffarel following his reshuffle.
There are still doubts over the futures of Van Dijk, Alexander-Arnold and Salah, and there are questions about what Liverpool will do to replace their most important three if they leave, but there will at least be some relief in knowing Alisson’s successor has already been decided.
Fortunately, there doesn’t seem to be any sudden changes that fans will have to accept, as the world’s best No. 1 player will continue to exist.
