Liverpool are reportedly mulling at the prospect of making an offer for Arsenal winger Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, who according to The Telegraph is looking to leave the gunners at the end of the campaign. The 23-year-old was only vaguely linked with Liverpool a few months ago.
The Reds also seemed intent on signing Julian Brandt from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer. The 20-year-old has been making a big impression in the Bundesliga. Given the success Liverpool have already had with regard to players coming from Germany, he seemed like a great prospect – especially at around $30 million. Now, however, Liverpool are considering to switch their attention towards Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, who would be better at an immediate impact rather than Brandt.
The Bayer Leverkusen man would be coming to a new league and he is only 20 years old, Liverpool could realistically expect the player to take a few more years before he starts to make an impact in the first team. In many ways, he may be similar to Philippe Coutinho. The club, though, seem to be seeking instant impact and this has resulted in Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain being considered.
Rumours about the future of Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain have been going on for several months. The England star has not been offered a new contract even though his existing deal runs out in the summer of 2018. Hence, he would be having less than 12 months left on his contract in the upcoming summer transfer window.
This puts the player at a major advantage when it comes to negotiating a further contract with Arsenal or potentially leaving the club. He has been at Arsenal since 2011, having arrived from Southampton as a highly rated teenager. His transfer was viewed in a similar way to the signing of Theo Walcott.
Oxlade-Chamberlain has had limited impact in the Arsenal first team this season. The club are going through a period of crisis. A 10-2 defeat on aggregate against Bayern Munich has left Arsenal with serious doubts about retaining Arsene Wenger as their manager beyond the current campaign. The presence of Wenger has been a major factor behind attracting the top names or highly rated youngsters like Oxlade-Chamberlain.
With the Frenchman set to leave, a number of his signings may also depart the club. Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez are seen as the two key players expected to leave the club in the summer, as even their contracts are running out sooner rather than expected.
In the 22 league appearances he has made this season, Oxlade-Chamberlain has scored two goals and assisted four strikes.
