Liverpool are interested in moving for one of Germany’s best defenders in Benedikt Howedes, according to reports from German outlet DW Sport (via Mirror). The German has played his entire senior career at Schalke but it seems like we want to bring him over to England.
The 29-year-old is contracted at Schalke till 2020 but could be available to us for a rather modest £18million, which is a steal in this crazy and inflated transfer market. Things haven’t been the best for the World Cup winner as he was stripped of his captaincy by new manager Domenico Tedesco and was even put on the bench in the win over RB Leipzig on the opening day of the season.
The Mirror also claims that the German has received interest from other clubs and will only leave Schalke for a team that does not play in Germany.
“It is clear that I received inquiries from other clubs,” he told Funke media group (via Mirror). “It is the nature that my advisor checks and answers.
“I’ve always said that I would exclude a change within the league, but I can imagine a transfer outside the country. But the time for that, as of today, has not arrived.”
The Bild further claims that the German is going to make a move out of Schalke soon and that will be music to our ears. Jurgen Klopp has already done well in bringing Joel Matip for free and spending a bit of money on someone as experienced as Howedes would only be good for our squad.
The German is one of the best in the country and can play across the back line, even as a left-back or as a right-back. Howedes also has experience in playing as a defensive midfielder and is a towering presence in the heart of the defence.
Howedes would want to play a lot of football ahead of the World Cup and that seems highly unlikely to happen given that the defender has fallen down the pecking order at the club. The 29-year-old is a known entity to Klopp, thanks to his time as the Borussia Dortmund manager and maybe a sly bid would not be the worst thing for us too.
Instead of spending a huge amount on Virgil van Dijk, we can bring in someone who can be a leader at the back and also provide his experience to the young players. Howedes would be a steal in this transfer window and making it happen would be amazing for everyone.