Karius likely to remain number one as Cillessen speculation halted

Loris Karius looks set to be Liverpool’s no. 1 goalkeeper at the start of the season after rumours of an imminent move for Barcelona’s Jasper Cillessen were refuted.

Liverpool set out to find a new number one after a concussed Karius made a pair of costly errors in the Champions League final, with Roma’s Alisson and Atletico Madrid’s Jan Oblak top of their list.

Alisson was viewed as the more realistic option, but has reportedly told Roma that he will only move to Spain, while the club have been priced out of a move for Oblak, who has a release clause of over £80million.

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MUNICH, GERMANY – Tuesday, August 1, 2017: Atlético de Madrid’s goalkeeper Jan Oblak during the Audi Cup 2017 match between Club S.S.C. Napoli and Atlético de Madrid at the Allianz Arena. (Pic by David Rawcliffe/Propaganda)

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A host of alternatives have since been suggested, among whom were Nick Pope of Burnley and Thomas Strakosha of Lazio, but those mooted moves were quickly ruled out.

And the interest in Cillessen has now been dismissed after murmurs on social media, with James Pearce of the Liverpool Echo reiterating The Times’ insistence that the Reds have no interest in the Dutch international.

Told that #LFC have zero interest in Barcelona keeper Jasper Cillessen – despite the recent speculation.

— James Pearce (@JamesPearceEcho) July 3, 2018

Klopp will run the rule over Karius this week as the squad reconvenes for pre-season training, and the consensus is that he will stick the German if he believes the wounds of Kiev to be sufficiently healed.

Historically, Klopp has elected to wait for top targets to become available rather than compromising. When a summer move for Virgil van Dijk collapsed in 2017, Klopp elected to wait until January to capture the Southampton man rather than pursuing an immediate Plan B.

Thus, the frustration in the efforts to negotiate a deal for Alisson will likely see Klopp stick with his fellow countryman, who was in good form before the final.

The situation could, of course, change before the transfer window shuts on August 9th.

The post Karius likely to remain number one as Cillessen speculation halted appeared first on AnfieldHQ.

Source: anfieldhq.com