Liverpool have been told that they face a big ‘problem’ regarding one player they could struggle to keep at Anfield in the long-term.
One of the Reds’ most consistent performers of the season so far has been Caoimhin Kelleher, who not for the first time has stepped up commendably when Alisson Becker has been sidelined through injury.
Unfortunately for the 25-year-old, Arne Slot has already declared that the Brazil international will go straight back into the starting XI once fit, and the Irishman also has just over 18 months remaining on his contract.
Liverpool facing ‘problem’ over Kelleher’s future
Speaking to Anfield Agenda, David Lynch claimed that Liverpool could find it difficult to persuade the Cork native to sign a new deal on Merseyside due to his public desire to establish himself as a fixed starter, as well as the intensifying competition for the second-choice berth behind Alisson.
The journalist said: “The problem is with Kelleher, in terms of keeping him, is that I believe he’s only got one year left on his contract at the end of this season.
“Liverpool don’t have a lot of control there and, from the player’s side of things, it’s very much my understanding that he’s just desperate to get out there now and get playing. He really did want to go last summer.
“It’s not that he hates it at Liverpool and he’s unhappy. He’s just ready to go out and be a number one somewhere, and for Liverpool they can’t make the case for him to sign a new contract because they’ve got Mamardashvili coming in. They’ve got Jaros who’s very close to doing really well. There just isn’t the argument there for him to be first choice.”
Liverpool must only sell Kelleher for what he’s truly worth
One thing that Kelleher’s recent performances will have done is strengthened his already iron-clad belief that he deserves to be an undisputed starter, and unfortunately it looks like he’ll never be granted that status at Liverpool.
Mercifully the Reds rejected a derisory bid from Nottingham Forest for the 25-year-old towards the end of the summer transfer window, but we imagine that any prospective suitors in the coming months would be preparing offers of at least £30m.
The Anfield hierarchy may well take the view that the Irishman’s stock is likely to be at an all-time high, unless he suffers an unthinkable loss of form or (heaven forbid) a serious injury in the near future, and seize their moment to reap a sizeable transfer fee for him in 2025.
In doing so, Liverpool would at least stave off a repeat of the messy situation in which they currently find themselves with Mo Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold, each of whom will be out of contract in less than eight months’ time as it stands.
There seems a sobering inevitability that Kelleher will depart in the next year, in which case the Reds must recognise his true value and only cash in on him for what he’s proven himself to be worth.
If they could recoup just over £50m from the sales of Sepp van den Berg and Fabio Carvalho to Brentford, neither of whom made any lasting impact at Anfield, at least Richard Hughes and Michael Edwards should be able to broker a tidy fee for the Irish goalkeeper if there’s to be a parting of ways in 2025.
