Liverpool fans have called for their club to make a move for Leicester City’s Riyad Mahrez following the departure of Philippe Coutinho.
The Brazilian midfielder left Anfield in a club record deal only days ago, joining Barcelona for a whopping £146 million after nearly five seasons on Merseyside.
Naturally, a loss such as that means the Reds will be on the hunt for a replacement sooner rather than later. Liverpool have already invested big sums in both Virgil Van Dijk and midfielder Naby Keita – however the latter will not join the club until next summer – leaving the Reds short of a key man in their midfield.
A host of names have been linked with making the move to Anfield in the wake of Coutinho’s exit, including Schalke’s Leon Goretzka and AS Monaco’s Thomas Lemar, however one name appears to have stood out to the fans more than the others – Riyad Mahrez.
The Algerian – who was heavily linked with moves to both Chelsea and Arsenal during the summer – has reportedly been identified as Liverpool’s number one target to replace Coutinho, with Jurgen Klopp admitting he is a huge admirer of the “extremely talented” playmaker.
Mahrez has been back at his sensational best for Leicester this season, scoring seven goals and providing 10 assists – recapturing the kind of form he showed during the 2015/16 season in which the Foxes won an unlikely Premier League title and Mahrez was named PFA Player of the Year.
Any move for the former Le Havre man is expected to cost Liverpool in the region of £40 million and upwards, but the Anfield faithful think it would be money well spent …
https://twitter.com/40YardGerrard/status/949065862362943489
https://twitter.com/mukitAhmad18/status/949484324759388161
A perfect replacement for @Phil_Coutinho ???
— Real Madrid -Addict- (@skabidi) January 6, 2018
https://twitter.com/forfukcsake/status/949413291503190016
https://twitter.com/FutbolBallack/status/949757610265161728
https://twitter.com/MikeCarlin95/status/949279668707971072
I’d absolutely take Mahrez at Liverpool. Not a direct Coutinho replacement, but he’s a Premier League proven player who’d need little bedding in period. Plenty of pace and flair in him, too. Only issue is his work rate which Klopp would address immediately.
— Leanne Prescott (@_lfcleanne) January 6, 2018
100% and play him in the middle
— Michael Bucko (@michaelmchugh08) January 5, 2018
