The Gladbach forward is a “monster” of a player and available for free this summer…
Liverpool are interested in Borussia Monchengladbach star Marcus Thuram, with the French forward’s £53k-per-week contract with the German Bundesliga outfit concluding this summer…
What’s the latest on Liverpool’s pursuit of Marcus Thuram?
That’s according to Spanish reports, who claim that following Roberto Firmino’s departure from Anfield at the end of his deal, Thuram has been identified as a shrewd replacement.
Some supporters might have reservations about targeting a forward this summer with such a striking requirement for midfield reinforcements, but Thuram is both prolific and dynamic and might be too good to pass up considering his imminency as a free agent.
The likes of Manchester United, Newcastle United and Tottenham Hotspur are all also interested in the 25-year-old, and Reds boss Jurgen Klopp must act swiftly if he is to ensnare the ace.
Should Liverpool sign Marcus Thuram?
A towering forward of 6 foot 4, supporters could be forgiven for assuming that Thuram’s trade lies in a poaching role as the magnetising focal point.
And while he is a menacing figure with his aerial threat, winning a career average of 2.2 of his aerial battles – as per WhoScored – the dynamic attacker’s game encompasses a range of different skills.
A competent offensive weapon across the scope of the front three positions, the ten-cap Frenchman would certainly provide firepower in a wealth of roles under Klopp’s wing, perhaps consolidating the Liverpool attack’s effectiveness with his blend of direct potency, creative flair and fleet-footed physicality.
As per FBref, he ranks among the top 24% of forwards across Europe’s top five leagues over the past year for rate of non-penalty goals, the top 13% for rate of assists, the top 12% for progressive carries and the top 13% for successful take-ons per 90.
Hailed as a “physical monster” by Herve Renard, Thuram’s prospective Anfield arrival could spell danger for £85m club-record signing Darwin Nunez, with the Uruguayan striker’s maiden campaign on English shores ebbing and flowing between devastating brilliance and agonising profligacy.
Nunez scored 15 goals and supplied four assists from just 26 starting appearances for the Reds this season, though his alarming wastefulness in front of goal has left those affiliated rueing his travails this year, with the Liverpool Echo’s Theo Squires branding him an “agent of chaos” – wreaking havoc, though not always as his outfit might hope.
Like Thuram, the 23-year-old has been described as a “monster” – this time by sports writer Charlotte Coates – and flourishes both as a centre-forward and shifted out to the left flank, and if Thuram was to join the fold on Merseyside, it could disrupt Nunez’s second season at the club with the congestion of first-rate forwards.
The fact that the Gladbach ace is so “clinical” – as heralded by BBC’s Raj Chohan – could end up being the bane of the problem for Nunez, who has missed 20 big chances in the Premier League this year and scored just nine goals.
Whether Klopp looks to swoop for Thuram, and indeed whether it would be the best course of action, remains to be seen, and while the phenom boasts a glinted tool kit, it might derail a ‘chaotic’ but enthralling weapon in Nunez, who could yet alight the Premier League in vermilion flames.
