Liverpool CLOSE to their best MONEYBALL signing ever

Liverpool's midfield has undergone some serious surgery in recent years.

Last season saw the arrivals of Ryan Gravenberch, Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai in a transfer window that completely changed the makeup of the squad, with younger midfielders brought in to replace the likes of Jordan Henderson and Fabinho, who joined Saudi Arabian sides on massive wages.

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Arne Slot has used those three to completely revitalise the side, with all three crucial parts of Liverpool's fantastic start to the season alongside Curtis Jones.

Throw Harvey Elliott into the mix and you have five midfielders competing for three positions across the season. Wataru Endo looks likely to leave in January, meaning players like Jones and Szoboszlai will need to be used in deeper positions more often.

It leaves a space in the squad for another attacking midfielder, and Liverpool have been linked with Lyon's Rayan Cherki this week. The French side are in financial chaos and will need to sell some of their star players in order to balance the books.

That's where Liverpool could come in.

Liverpool’s ‘Moneyball’ approach

Liverpool under FSG have always preached financial stability over rash transfer decisions. While this can be frustrating for fans, it's paid dividends over the past decade, with Liverpool secure in their spot as one of the best sides in the world.

It’s why the club often wait to sign their first choice target rather than settling for an player they aren’t as strong on, as seen in their decision to wait an extra six months to sign Virgil van Dijk - probably one of the best decisions any team has made in the transfer market in the last 10 years.

It’s also why Liverpool broke the transfer record for a goalkeeper when signing Alisson from Roma in 2018.

Many would point to the high transfer fees for those players as a reason that they aren’t Moneyball signings, but FSG’s approach in the transfer market means the funds are available for the right targets when necessary. For example, signing Andy Robertson and Kostas Tsimikas for a combined €22m locked down the left-hand side of Liverpool’s defence for the past few years and allowed them to focus on signing players in other positions.

However, a ‘Moneyball’ approach isn’t just about buying the right players for the right fee, it’s also about finding opportunities in the market to get ahead of your rivals.

Daniel Sturridge and Phillipe Coutinho famously joined Liverpool in January 2013 for €15m and €13m respectively. Both were out of favour at their old clubs and were available for a lower price than usual. Liverpool pounced, Sturridge went on to score bags of goals and Coutinho was one of the Reds’ best players before leaving to fund the transfers of Van Dijk and Alisson. That’s Moneyball.

Signing Rayan Cherki would fit into that category of transfer perfectly.

Lyon’s financial woes

Lyon are one of France’s biggest clubs, having dominated Ligue 1 in the 00’s and producing countless stars through their excellent youth academy.

However, recent years haven’t been so kind to the club, who spent much of the first half of last season in the relegation zone before recovering to finish 6th.

This season has been kinder so far, with the side sitting in 5th position. However, that doesn't matter so much now as Lyon were handed a provisional relegation to Ligue 2 on Friday by the French football watchdog - the DNCG - as a result of financial mismanagement under owner John Textor.

The Ligue 1 club’s debt reportedly rose from €458 million to €508 million this season, after they signed a number of players during the summer transfer window, perhaps in preparation for the transfer ban that they are now under as well.

This opens the door to clubs who want to sign Lyon players, as the French side will need to raise funds by selling players if they are to have any chance of reversing the provisional relegation decision.

"We have too many players today,” owner John Textor as reported by L’Equipe. “[Head coach] Pierre Sage must decide who he wants to put on the field.

“There are 29. Ideally, we need 23 or 24. Some didn't leave.”

He added that Rayan Cherki will be the one to decide whether he leaves or stays at the club: "With him, we lost €15m but we have a longer-term agreement. He has a greater market value. He should stay in January but it will be his choice. As always in football."

Where would Rayan Cherki fit at Liverpool?

In Arne Slot’s current side, Cherki would provide good competition for Dominik Szoboszlai and Curtis Jones in the number 10 spot, as well as being a deputy on either flank.

Cherki, who has been described as ‘exceptional’ by former France manager Laurent Blanc, is a highly technical and creative playmaker who could add some guile to a Liverpool side that is still figuring out how best to break down opposition low blocks.

Slot’s tactics depend on his defenders playing the ball around the back to draw the opposition’s press before playing through to either a wide forward or number 10 in space.

Szoboszlai has been Slot’s main choice in that number 10 position so far this season, and offers Liverpool plenty of energy out of possession when pressing to regain the ball. However, he has been criticsed by some for his decisions on the ball, with Slot challenging him to improve his attacking numbers this season.

Cherki would offer a different option off the bench and could be used in games against teams lower down in the table who are more likely to sit off.

He has by far the best expected assists per 90 minutes in Ligue 1 this season - according to FotMob - with 0.65. PSG’s Ousmane Dembele is second on that list with 0.47 - the fact Cherki is ahead of PSG’s most creative player while in a lesser side says a lot about his ability to unlock defences.

The one player in Slot’s current squad that would be unhappy with any potential move for Cherki would be Harvey Elliott. The 21-year-old has been out with injury for much of the season, but is set to return to first team action in the next couple of weeks.

Elliott is a similar player to Cherki, and has vast Premier League experience, so would back himself to see off any challenge for his spot in the squad - but we've seen this season with Cody Gakpo and Luis Diaz that having competition for places drives performance levels as high as possible.

If Cherki does want to leave Lyon in January, don't be surprised if Liverpool act.

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