Why Liverpool must sign “unstoppable” £43m winger after Diomande setback

Liverpool are not going to find replacing Mohamed Salah all that easy this summer, but it needs to be done, with RB Leipzig’s Yan Diomande FSG’s top target.

Diomande may only be 19 years old, but he is off to a barnstorming start on the major stage, coming off the back of a first-class breakout season in the German Bundesliga, now spearheading Ivory Coast’s World Cup charge, excellent throughout the group stage and now into the last 32, where his nation meet Norway on Tuesday evening.

The versatile forward would be worth every penny. It’s just a pity that on Sunday evening, it was reported that he had chosen PSG as his next destination instead of Anfield.

Liverpool set to approach another Bundesliga winger

Diomande isn’t the only high-class winger on Liverpool’s radar this summer.

While Anfield sporting director Richard Hughes has already hijacked Newcastle United’s move for Victor Munoz, with the Spain winger having penned a £35m move with Liverpool, Mohamed Salah’s departure calls for even more quality.

Hugo Ekitike’s long-term absence due to a ruptured Achilles heel has aggravated matters, but there is a sense now that Liverpool are preparing to sign yet another forward.

According to Fussball Daten, Liverpool are ready to make an approach to sign Said El Mala from FC Koln this summer, though this is dependent on their bid to sign ‘primary targets’ such as Diomande.

With a €50m (£43m) price tag, El Mala would be considerably cheaper than the Ivorian, and while Munoz has already been added to Iraola’s left flank, Liverpool are signing dynamic wingers who can operate across different positions.

With their bid to sign Diomande unfortuantely falling by the wayside, then El Mala would be the perfect fallback, and FSG are indeed ready to pull the trigger and beat away competition from the likes of Brentford, Brighton and Newcastle United, the last of whom have supposedly lodged their own offer in recent days.

Why El Mala can be a Munoz upgrade for Liverpool

Hailed for his “phenomenal” attacking ability by talent scout Jacek Kulig, El Mala is a direct winger who is invariably dangerous in the final third, clinical and creative.

He is one of the most exciting ball carriers in Europe, actually hailed as “the most direct winger in Europe” by data analyst Spencer Mossman and as “unstoppable” in the words of analyst and reporter Bence Bocsak. While El Mala might not be as relentless with his running as someone like Munoz, he is sharper in front of goal and younger besides. This all points towards him emerging as a superstar for a side like Liverpool.

After all, while Liverpool have signed Munoz with the expectation that he will continue to grow into a superstar over the next few years, the fact that El Mala may already be on a higher level suggests that Liverpool could hit the jackpot by signing him.

Of course, the counter-argument there is that the Reds are also after Diomande, who is their top attacking target this summer, and El Mala wouldn’t pack the same punch, but that’s not to say that he couldn’t grow into a superstar under Iraola’s wing.

Take Antoine Semenyo, for example, a young wideman from Bristol City who turned into a sensation under Iraola’s wing at Bournemouth. El Mala could repeat that, bearing the natural prolific edge in front of goal and the creativity to establish himself at Liverpool.

Munoz can do it too, but El Mala might just take the cake as the more talented man, certainly having outperformed him last year. Given that he is versatile and comfortable across the frontline, El Mala may even have such a positive effect that the Reds faithful quickly forget about Diomande, should he be signed as an alternative.

Munoz only scored six times in La Liga last season. He has a lot to offer, but Liverpool plummeted from their expected level last year, and El Mala could put them back on their perch.