Report: After Coutinho Klopp wants new contracts for three Liverpool stars, one proving tricky
By Will Butcher
Jurgen Klopp is desperate to tie down the future of three Liverpool first-team stars after Philippe Coutinho put pen to paper on a new deal, according to a report.
The Mirror claims Klopp is keen to see Adam Lallana, Dejan Lovren and Emre Can renew their contracts at Anfield as he looks to keep his star players on Merseyside.
However, it is believed that a deal for Germany international Can is proving tricky after the two parties have failed to find an agreement in talks lasting since the summer.
Can only has 18 months left on his contract and alarm bells will be starting to go off.
Italian outlet Corriere dello Sport claimed that Serie A champions Juventus had scouted the former Bayer Leverkusen star through January, during a season where Can hasn’t enjoyed as much of an impact. Klopp will be hoping he hasn’t had his head turned.
Playmaker Coutinho put pen to paper on a new deal that will see him remain at Anfield until 2022, with the BBC claiming the 24-year-old has become the Reds’ highest earner.
Former Borussia Dortmund boss Klopp is keen to reward Lallana for his wonderful form this season too, which has seen him score seven goals in 20 league and cup matches.
Similarly, Lovren’s role at the back for Liverpool has seen him become one of Klopp’s first names on the Merseyside giants’ team sheet and a new deal is set to be tabled.
Football Insider verdict:
Klopp may have watched from afar as Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino tied the majority of his senior stars down to new contracts at White Hart Lane. Klopp may now look to copy Pochettino’s impressive work by securing the future of a number of his best players in order to fend off potential future interest. Signing Lallana, Lovren and Can would be top business by German boss Klopp, with the trio forming an important core of the Liverpool side. Seeing the three players sign new deals, along with Coutinho, will renew a sense of enthusiasm on Merseyside and could see Liverpool’s Premier League title challenge benefit as a result.
In other Liverpool transfer news, a reliable journalist believes Klopp will target this Bundesliga attacker in the summer.
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