Liverpool have been scouting Lille midfielder Carlos Baleba with a view to a possible move this summer.
That’s according to 90min, who claim that the Reds are one of a number of sides tracking the 19-year-old. As well as a handful of teams from England, AC Milan, Juventus, Nice and Monaco are all said to be ‘showing interest’ in Baleba.
But despite his popularity on the continent, it’s reportedly ’emerging’ that a move to the Premier League is the most likely scenario for the Cameroonian.
To that end, Liverpool are claimed to have been watching Baleba closely. The other English sides mentioned are Arsenal, Manchester United, Newcastle, West Ham and Leicester.
Lille are said to view Baleba’s situation as being similar to that of now Everton midfielder Amadou Onana. As a result, its’ claimed that they could ask for around £30m for the teenager.
Baleba bursts onto the scene
As Liverpool scour the planet for new midfielders, Baleba’s is seemingly a new name into the hat. Having joined Lille just over a year ago, the youngster has started to impose himself this season.
Although far from a key player, Baleba started five matches in a row for Les Dogues at the turn of the year. He now has 14 appearances for them in 2022/23.
That Lille can demand £30m for a player with such little experience is testament to their reputation as talent-spotters. Everyone’s looking for the next superstar to drop off their conveyor belt.
In Liverpool terms, they won’t be looking at Baleba as being a starter in the side. Jurgen Klopp already has young midfield options around the same age as the Cameroonian. Namely Stefan Bajcetic and Harvey Elliott.
Yes, Jude Bellingham is nineteen too, but he’s a special case. Experience wise, he’s in a different stratosphere to all of Bajcetic, Elliott and Baleba.
So, as good as the young Lille man may be, we don’t think now is the time to be adding another teenager to the Liverpool squad. The Reds obviously need more established players to haul them back up the table, and there’s a raft of other teams in for Baleba. As a result, it might be best to bow out of this one for now.