Liverpool have been dealt a massive blow in their search for a forward. The Reds have been linked with a move for Inaki Williams of Athletic Bilbao but the 22-year-old attacker has reaffirmed his commitment to the La Liga side.
Williams had scored 13 goals last season but has only found the back of the net once in this campaign, though he has a couple of assists to his name as well. The Spaniard was quoted by AS as saying:
“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I’m where I want to be.
“I’m very happy where I am and I am very grateful to Athletic, to the fans, the club and my team-mates for their support.”
The Spaniard has made over 67 appearances for the senior Bilbao side and has stated that he wants to be the X factor at San Mames.
“The truth is I’m very happy here and I want to stay here for many years.
“I want to be the one who makes the crowd at the San Mames go wild by scoring loads of goals.”
This would be great news for all Athletic fans but certainly not good news for the Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp. It has been reported earlier that the German does want to sign Williams up and was willing to meet the £45 million valuations for the Spaniard.
A rising star in Spanish football
Williams also played for the national side as he was brought on as a substitute in a friendly against Bosnia and Herzegovina in May and was one of the 11 standby players for Vicente del Bosque’s Euro 2016 side.
The Bilbao-born player can be put across anywhere in the front line and is most effective as a winger. The 22-year-old is known for his work rate and is one of the quicker players in La Liga. He is a threat with his aerial ability as well but it does seem as a surprise as to why Liverpool would want to sign him up.
Williams still has to prove himself in the Spanish league and has been on a bit of a barren run this season. Not only that, he might not be the typical Jurgen Klopp player and could struggle to fit into the gegenpressing style that the German has applied at Anfield.
There is no doubting that Williams does have a bright future. But he isn’t the final product and spending £45 million on him would be a bit too much. Liverpool have conducted better business this season with Sadio Mane coming in for much less, even Joel Matip came in on a free, so that price tag on the 22-year-old is ludicrous and Klopp should not look to sign him up.
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