Could Mateo Mussachio be playing at Anfield next term?
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Liverpool are looking to take advantage of Villarreal’s failure to extend Mateo Musacchio’s contract, and secure the 23-year-old defender on a free transfer in the summer, reports talkSPORT.
However, Spanish giants Barcelona are also interested in the Argentine’s signature, believing he could be a cheap alternative to Chelsea’s David Luiz, who was last linked to the club by the Telegraph earlier this month.
Musacchio has been a key figure in Villarreal’s impressive La Liga campaign. The side, who were only promoted last summer, currently sit seventh, and will qualify for the Europa League if they carry on their good form.
The centre-half has started 26 top flight matches, weighing in with one goal and one assist so far. Like many South American defenders, he’s comfortable in possession, and has the ability to carry the ball out of defence and link up with his midfielders. His tackling is aggressive, and he averages 3.5 interceptions every game.
Despite his importance to the team, he’s not been able to agree a contract extension yet, meaning he’s available on a free this summer.
Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers has watched his side put in some truly exceptional performances this term, but while their attack has been on fire, their defence has been shaky. The Reds have conceded 38 goals, a whopping 15 more than their rivals for the title, Chelsea.
Although Martin Skrtel has scored six goals, his defending has at times been brought into question, while Mamadou Sakho and Daniel Agger have suffered with niggling injuries all season. Kolo Toure is error prone, while Tiago Ilori has been shipped out on loan to Granada.
Rodgers then could bring in Musacchio to shore up the position, although he’s apparently not worried by his side’s defensive frailties.
“It’s not how we work, to outscore our opponents, we’re just conceding some poor goals,” the Reds boss said after the Cardiff win this weekend, talkSPORT reported.
“But we’re off the back of two clean sheets and against two difficult teams in Southampton and Manchester United, so I take as much pride in that as the amount of goals we score.”
Liverpool face Sunderland at home on Wednesday evening, knowing a win will keep them in with a genuine chance of securing a maiden Premier League title.
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