Benfica inquire about Liverpool star ‘separate’ from Darwin Nunez deal

Transfer News: Benfica inquire about Liverpool defender Kostas Tsimikas separate from Darwin Nunez talks

According to Portuguese outlet Record via Giannis Chorianopoulos (h/t Liverpool.com), SL Benfica made an inquiry about the situation of Liverpool defender Kostas Tsimikas.

The Greek star signed for the Reds from Olympiacos for an £11.7million fee and has proven to be a bargain buy, just like Andrew Robertson. The two of them compete for playing time down the left-hand side, but it’s the Scotsman who leads that race.

Nevertheless, it is believed that the Reds are not considering a sale. And this is a stance they must maintain given the importance of Tsimikas in this team.

The importance of a strong backup player cannot be understated. The former Hull City man would be on his toes knowing that Tsimikas can take his position if he doesn’t perform well.

Wise call from LFC

A mini-version of this situation happened in perhaps our costliest draw of the season. Robertson losing his man led to Tottenham Hotspur scoring against us at Anfield in the second half of a must-win game last month.

Klopp then subbed off Robertson eight minutes later and on came the ‘Greek Scouser’ in his place. This could have been a tactical switch but any LFC fan would tell you it’s an odd sight seeing Robbo- who is known for his stamina- taken off in the 64th minute.

It served as a reminder that Liverpool boast of a strong left-hand side with two players who would start at left-back for most teams in this country. Amidst this, it is important they keep hold of both of them.

While the inquiry about Kostantinos Tsimikas was separate from the Darwin Nunez deal, as the Reds aim to get a deal across the line for the £85million-rated Uruguayan, it would have surely acted as a discount given Benfica would have paid some sum for the Greece international in return.

More Liverpool News

• Transfer News: Manchester United ‘seriously interested’ in Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain of Liverpool but on one condition
• Journo: Arch-rivals trying to ‘steal’ €100m target from Liverpool at 11th hour
• Transfer News: Liverpool place hefty price tag on Takumi Minamino amidst Fulham and Wolves interest

But it probably wouldn’t have been worth it, given how tough it would have then been for the Reds if Robbo was to get injured or become unavailable mid-season and Tsimikas was plying his trade in Portugal.