Liverpool were one of the sides trying to sign Daichi Kamada on a free transfer this summer.
The Reds were linked with Kamada as he prepared to leave Eintracht Frankfurt at the end of the season. Although the Japanese seemed set to join AC Milan, he eventually moved to Lazio instead.
And according to his agent, the two Italian sides weren’t the only ones interested. Speaking to Sport Italia this week, Gianluca Di Carlo has claimed that Liverpool were also keen on Kamada.
“The player was on a free transfer and many clubs had gone for him: Milan, Liverpool, Benfica, Real Sociedad,” Di Carlo says.
“The Rossoneri changed their management and I understand that there were no longer any references for the agreements that had been made.
“In all this, Lazio sniffed out the deal and the entourage immediately liked the hypothesis. Not without the interference of many clubs. On the other hand, we are talking about a player who would normally have been worth €27-28 million [around £24m].”
Liverpool fail in Kamada pursuit
Even with his agent speaking so candidly, it seems strange that Liverpool would really want to sign Kamada.
He’s certainly a good player, he showed that with a very healthy nine goals and six assists in the Bundesliga for Frankfurt last season.
On a free transfer you can see why so many clubs were trying to get themselves a bargain.
But as a kind of languid attacking midfielder, Kamada just doesn’t fit the profile of what Liverpool were looking for. He’s much more of a creative midfielder than Liverpool tend to deploy.
Nevertheless, the Reds were clearly shopping in the Bundesliga market. They do have a tendency to surprise when targeting players too, so perhaps there is something in it.
Either way, we don’t think Liverpool will be kicking themselves too hard at having missed out on Wataru Endo’s international teammate.
Although he hasn’t been a regular starter for Lazio so far, he only has one goal and one assist in Serie A.
The 27-year-old will certainly improve as the season goes on, but we’re fine with Liverpool losing this battle.
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