Marc Guehi to go ‘straight into starting XI’ after agreeing Liverpool move
Liverpool are not working on a £40million deal for Marc Guehi in order to leave England centre-back sat on the bench.
Speaking on the new edition of Football Insider’s Inside Track podcast, former England goalkeeper Paul Robinson suggested that Guehi‘s potential arrival at Anfield will see him become an immediate starter.
Football Insider revealed on 15 August Liverpool and Crystal Palace had “reopened” talks for Guehi with the Eagles sticking to their £40million valuation, and Arne Slot keen to barter Palace down to £30–35m.
Liverpool could abandon their talks and wait until next summer to potentially sign Guehi on a free transfer instead, but Robinson has told Football Insider that Slot will need the 25-year-old for the season ahead.
Ibrahima Konate’s woeful display against Bournemouth in Liverpool’s Premier League opener, as well as his and Virgil van Dijk‘s patchy injury records, could see Guehi immediately become a starter at Anfield.
Robinson told Football Insider that as the Reds prepare to defend their Premier League title and mount a Champions League charge, sigining Guehi would allow Slot to rotate Konate in and out of the side.
Konate on borrowed time if Guehi signs for Liverpool
This article contains exclusive comment from Paul Robinson, a football pundit and former England, Tottenham and Leeds goalkeeper.
Football Insider revealed on Sunday that Liverpool are happy to bide their time for Guehi after the arrival of Giovanni Leoni from Parma, as Crystal Palace refuse to renege on their captain’s £40m price tag.
Speaking on the latest Inside Track, Robinson argued that Liverpool’s best course of action would be to sign Guehi this summer, and bring him straight into the starting line-up to partner Van Dijk or Konate.
“I don’t think Guehi is a replacement [for Konate], I think he plays alongside Van Dijk”, Robinson told Football Insider.
“You look at Van Dijk last season; he missed certain games with injury, Konate missed [games] through injury, and it’s just an area that Liverpool are light.
“If you had everybody fit and Guehi was in the squad, Van Dijk and Guehi play together – with Konate and Van Dijk, you can’t guarantee fitness for a whole season.
“[Slot] wants to rotate, and you need top-quality players if you’re going to compete on all fronts.
“Nobody’s guaranteed a place these days when teams are at the top of the Premier League, competing for the Champions League as well. We see squad rotation all the time.”
Liverpool move can take Guehi to the next level.
Leoni’s £26million move from Parma to Liverpool does give Slot another option at centre-back other than Van Dijk, Konate and Joe Gomez at present, but the 18-year-old is very much a signing for the future.
Guehi, on the other hand, would be expected to hit the ground running at Anfield if Liverpool can break their negotiating deadlock with Palace, particularly with the 2026 World Cup on the horizon for England.
Crystal Palace are loathe to lose their captain for below their £40m valuation – and even more so for free next summer – but Guehi completing his switch to Anfield before September 1 could be the best move for all parties.