Liverpool completed the signing of Hugo Ekitike on Wednesday evening, with the Frenchman set to fly out and join up with his new teammates.
The Reds are currently away in Hong Kong as they prepare for Saturday’s match against AC Milan.
With Liverpool‘s media team away with the rest of the squad, Ekitike was announced as the Reds’ latest addition in a decidedly low-key manner.
There is nothing low-key about the Frenchman, though, as he becomes the new focal point for Arne Slot’s attack.
The Liverpool head coach had been on the lookout for a new man to lead the line after seeing Darwin Nunez fail to fire last season.
And as Slot and the Liverpool recruitment team searched for the right answer to that puzzling question, they stacked Ekitike up against luminaries such as Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe, and were left delighted by the results.
Liverpool banking on Hugo Ekitike potential
This summer has seen a raft of top Premier League clubs on the search for new strikers all at the same time.
But while Chelsea opted for Liam Delap and Joao Pedro, and Arsenal are set to sign Viktor Gyokeres, Liverpool have decided on Ekitike.
And according to The Daily Mail, the Reds firmly believe they have got the best of the bunch.
They claim that when the fabled Liverpool data team ran the numbers on Ekitike, the only two centre-forwards to come out more favourably were Haaland and Mbappe. Both clearly ungettable.
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Interestingly, The Athletic also mention the Manchester City and Real Madrid superstars, claiming Liverpool believe ‘relative to other centre-forwards,’ that only Haaland and Mbappe have shown similar potential to Ekitike.
Although his goal tally was bettered by others last season, the 23-year-old reportedly performed well in other metrics, leading to Liverpool being convinced he was the right player for them.
What position will Ekitike play for Liverpool?
Ekitike’s arrival has coincided with talk that Liverpool are still trying to sign Alexander Isak.
If the Reds saw Haaland and Mbappe as the blueprints for Ekitike’s addition, then it would be interesting to hear where the Newcastle man fits in amongst all of that.
As journalist Ian Doyle noted after Liverpool announced Ekitike’s arrival, the Reds see the former Eintracht man as potentially being to play as a part of a front two, perhaps even alongside Isak.
“Ekitike viewed as versatile forward who can play at number nine, but also out wide or as second striker,” says Doyle.
“Will join up with new team-mates in Hong Kong. LFC still monitoring developments of Alexander Isak at Newcastle.”
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