Report: Liverpool did try to sign Konrad Laimer before Arthur Melo but had left it too late

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Liverpool tried to sign Konrad Laimer before completing a deal for Arthur Melo, according to reports. The Reds left it too late, however.

This comes from the Athletic. They report that Liverpool tried to sign Konrad Laimer in the past week and made contact with RB Leipzig.

The German side told them no, however, as they wouldn’t sell so close to the transfer deadline. Liverpool had left it too late.

That meant the Reds had to try something else. They’ve now signed Arthur Melo on loan from Juventus with an option to buy, of course. Though, it appears he wasn’t the only choice.

Gianluca di Marzio reports that Liverpool asked about Denis Zakaria, too. Ultimately, they decided Arthur was their best option.

Liverpool tried to sign Konrad Laimer

This is quite an interesting one as Laimer and Arthur are very different players. One is a pressing midfielder – possibly the very best – while Liverpool’s new no.29 is a passer, first and foremost.

An exceptional one at that. Arthur offers an alternative to Thiago when it comes to building attacks and playing through a press. Liverpool have been incredibly reliant on their Spaniard but this eases the pressure.

However, it sounds as though that option wasn’t their first choice. They wanted to add Laimer, who would have brought more drive and aggression to midfield. Much more of a Jordan Henderson than a Thiago, then.

Perhaps part of that is Laimer being a better fit next to Thiago. Perhaps it’s because they saw the Leipzig star as a more of a sure thing, with Arthur unquestionably the bigger risk.

Regardless, Arthur is the one they’ve got. We’ll now see just what he can bring over the course of the season and whether he ends up being worth the option to buy.

Though it’s worth noting that Laimer is out of contract in 2023. That story hasn’t quite ended yet.