Liverpool can land their next Steven Gerrard in Lille powerhouse Renato Sanches

by Vijievan Jeevathayalan share

3 minute read 23/12/2020 | 07:15pm

Liverpool could find the closest thing to a potential Steven Gerrard successor in Lille midfielder Renato Sanches.

Jurgen Klopp would love him

Whilst most Premier League fans will remember Sanches’ awful time whilst on loan at Swansea, the Portugal international has since developed into one of European football’s finest box-to-box midfielders.

And according to TuttoMercatoWeb, Jurgen Klopp’s side have “moved forward” in finding an £18m agreement for the 23-year-old, who is currently shining for French side Lille.

Sanches

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Wijnaldum

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With speculation over Georginio Wijnaldum’s future persisting, Klopp could find a perfect replacement for him in Sanches.

A replacement for Wijnaldum

The box-to-box dynamism and drive is something Sanches has in abundance, with Bayern Munich icon Lothar Matthaus waxing lyrical about his ability after an eye-catching goal against Benfica.

He said: “The way Sanches began and then scored the goal, it was similar to how I played. The commitment, dynamism, speed, participation, steadiness – he could have fallen twice en route to goal. But he wanted to get the goal he needed – he prevailed and received his reward. In that sense, he really reminded me of myself.”

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And the “beast” Sanches is also a familiar name to a manager of Liverpool’s title rivals, Pep Guardiola. The Spaniard described him as a “fantastic” player with a “great future” ahead of him, and the midfielder is proving the Manchester City boss right at Lille.

As per Whoscored, he is averaging an impressive 0.8 tackles, 1.5 shots, 0.9 key passes and 2.1 dribbles per game, and his all-round influence and game is just continuing to get better. Liverpool could wave goodbye to Wijnaldum if they can manage to pull off a coup for Sanches.

Whilst suggesting Sanches could fill the shoes of Steven Gerrard is a massive stretch right now, the Portuguese starlet’s style of play is eerily reminiscent of the Liverpool legend’s early years at Anfield and could be a massive hit on Merseyside.