Deal Likely: Klopp Admits Midfielder’s January Exit Is One Way Or The Other

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is reluctantly open to the idea of letting one of his midfielders make a temporary move in the winter transfer window but is optimistic that there is long-term future for him at the club.

The player in question is Marko Grujic who incidentally is the first signing for the German manager at Liverpool. The midfielder arrived from Red Star Belgrade in January 2016 but is not a regular with Klopp’s first-team.

The 20-year-old is rated very highly within Anfield but such is the amount of talent at Klopp’s disposal that it is very difficult for Grujic to break into the first team at the moment.

There is a bit of frustration in the player’s camp due to the lack of opportunities and his agent has already indicated a desire to engineer a move away from Anfield, at least on a temporary basis.

The latest reports say that Klopp is aware of his player’s desire and is willing to sanction a move away from Liverpool on a temporary basis in the January transfer window.

“He’s right, Marko deserves to play more now,” Klopp was quoted by Liverpool Echo.

“If it’s not possible here then we need to think about it [a loan].”

Grujic cost the Reds a mere £5.1million from Red Star Belgrade. I say the fee is ‘mere’ because in this age of huge transfer fees, to sign such a highly talented player for such low price is almost a coup.

However, he has only played 12 minutes of first-team football for the Reds since September and I won’t blame him for his desire to look for a move elsewhere to get more minutes on the pitch.

Klopp says that the player had made a lot of progress at the club and it is only because of the talent in his squad that Grujic is unable to make it to the first-team.

He added: “I like the boy a lot. He has made progress like hell. His heading is outstanding, but he doesn’t make the squad a lot which isn’t the best thing for him for sure.”

So, is this a good move? To be fair, I don’t see any chance for Grujic to break into the first-team even in the case of unfortunate injuries. Klopp has got all the bases covered, especially in the midfield and so the youngster’s chances are very limited.

However, it is too early to give up on him and the best way forward would be to send him on loan and see how he develops. After all, if Klopp says the player needs to be retained, he should be!

What do you think?