Liverpool were badly in need of a new goalkeeper during the summer of 2018.
The Reds had made it all the way to the Champions League final while rotating Loris Karius and Simon Mignolet in 2017/18.
But after Karius threw away the biggest game of Liverpool’s season against Real Madrid, it was clear that he needed replacing.
With Jurgen Klopp unconvinced by Mignolet, the German gave the green light to the arrival of Alisson Becker for a whopping £67m.
It looked a good signing at the time, with Alisson already established in Europe with Roma and as Brazil’s starting goalkeeper. But just how good an addition it was would soon become even more clear.
And after Alisson put in a Champions League masterclass against PSG on Wednesday, journalist Melissa Reddy has recalled how Liverpool players first reacted to their new number one back in 2018.
Liverpool players in awe of Alisson Becker
When his time at Anfield does eventually come to a close, there’s every chance Alisson will go down as the best goalkeeper in Liverpool history.
And according to Reddy, it was apparant right from day one that the Brazilian would be a hit amongst the Liverpool squad.
Taking to X on Thursday, the journalist shared an anecdote from Alisson’s first arrival amongst his new teammates in pre-season of 2018.
“One of my favourite Alisson anecdotes is the reaction of the team when they’d met him for the first time,” she says. “He walked into the room at Hotel Royal in Evian-les-Bains and – as the account went from someone present – “there were gasps, a lot of ‘—— hell,’ and ‘he’s bigger than I imagined’ with another adding ‘and handsomer.”
“Alisson is a rarity in prompting so much awe, yet remaining among the game’s most grounded and understated players. At Internacional, they called him ‘Iceman.’ Jurgen Klopp used ‘lifesaver’ a few times. Corriere dello Sport termed *that* save against Napoli ‘miracolo.’
“He’s one of the best goalkeepers in history,” Reddy continues. “But when I asked him how he feels about that description, Alisson naturally downplayed it: “I came to Liverpool in the right moment, when the team were already in the middle of the right way. I got a good seat and have enjoyed the view.”
Alisson never looks back for Liverpool
Right from the very first minute Alisson became a Liverpool player, he has looked absolutely at home.
There have been some issues with injuries along the way, but what he’s been fit, the 32-year-old has been one of if not the best in the world.
Wednesday’s performance was right up there with the best we’ve ever seen from Ali, and if Liverpool can go on to win the Champions League in May, it will take on an extra significance.
After years of being unsure about their goalkeeper, it must have been a relief for Liverpool players to see Alisson come in almost seven years ago.
In the years since he has gone on to reaffirm that trust on literally hundreds of ocassions.
There will be a time when he is no longer Liverpool’s starting goalkeeper. But on the evidence seen at the Parc des Princes, that should not be any time soon.
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