“He will probably come back”

Jamie Carragher has opened up on Liverpool‘s options following Alexander Isak’s injury. He said that while Hugo Ekitike is expected to lead the line, the Reds might also sign Antoine Semenyo in January.

Arne Slot’s side beat Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 away in the Premier League on Saturday, December 20. Alexander Isak came on as a substitute and scored in the 56th minute. However, as Micky van de Ven tried to block his shot, the striker suffered an injury and had to be subbed off.

The Merseysiders have confirmed that Isak has undergone surgery and will be out of action for a few months. Speaking about how the club deals with his injury, Jamie Carragher said on Sky Sports:

“I think it’s pretty certain now Salah will stay at Liverpool when he comes back from AFCON. People wanted that to happen anyway and we spoke about that last week. I think Harvey Elliott’s situation at Aston Villa… he will probably come back to the club because he’s finding it difficult at Aston Villa. There’s been big talk for a long time that Liverpool are interested in [Antoine] Semenyo.”

“The fact he’s a wide player who can play both sides – and your two wide players are predominantly Gakpo and Salah. Both can play centre-forward and I think Liverpool will probably go more that way [in the transfer market] rather than going for a centre-forward or buying someone they don’t really fancy,” he added.

Further speaking about potential January signings for Arne Slot’s side, Carragher added:

“They seem to really like Semenyo, as a lot of other teams do, as well. I go back to what Liverpool did a few years ago when they had a few centre-backs out, they brought in a lad from Preston and a lad from overseas. They were never going to be Liverpool players for the future, it was to get them until the end of the season.

“Liverpool may find a striker to do that, but I don’t think they’ll be looking to spend big money on someone they don’t particularly fancy right now,” he added.

The Merseysiders signed Isak for a British record transfer fee of £125 million from Newcastle United in the summer. He has scored just three goals and provided one assist in 16 games across competitions this season.

Antoine Semenyo reportedly favors Liverpool amidst interest from multiple clubs

Bournemouth forward Antoine Semenyo has been linked with several Premier League clubs for a potential January transfer. However, as per The Guardian, he prefers a move to Anfield over the other options. Manchester City are reportedly second on his preference list, with Manchester United also interested.

As per journalist David Ornstein, Semenyo has already declined a potential move to Tottenham Hotspur. He told NBC Sports Soccer:

“Tottenham were very keen and were prepared to pay a significant salary to Antoine Semenyo. But he politely is focusing on other options – namely, it seems City or United.”

Semenyo has been excellent for Bournemouth since arriving from Bristol City in January 2023. He has scored 30 goals and provided 13 assists in 106 appearances for them across competitions.

Semenyo was also linked with a move away in the summer, but he ended up signing a new contract valid until 2030. However, it has a release worth £65 million, which can be triggered in the first two weeks of January.