Liverpool have fortified their starting XI with the signing of Alisson from Roma for £65 million inclusive of add-ons, which is a world-record fee for a goalkeeper.
The Brazil international undertook a medical and inked a six-year contract on Thursday to become the club’s fourth new face this summer after the additions of Naby Keita, Fabinho and Xherdan Shaqiri.
The breakdown of the cost is a guaranteed £56m upfront, £2.2m of which will go to the 25-year-old’s former club Internacional.
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— Liverpool FC (@LFC) July 19, 2018
A further £9m in extras is dependent on Champions League qualification, winning the Premier League or a European trophy.
Roma had quoted Liverpool £90m in May, but dropped the asking price to £75m last month. The Reds have managed to negotiate a total package at £10m below that figure while Chelsea dithered as they navigate Real Madrid’s pursuit of Thibaut Courtois.
The Serie A side felt stung by selling Mohamed Salah to Liverpool last summer for a measly initial £36.8m, but both parties can be happy with their trading this time around.
Alisson’s recruitment significantly upgrades the weakest department in Jurgen Klopp’s squad, an area that the Merseysiders had failed to enhance since the departure of Pepe Reina in 2013.
The Brazilian has long been Liverpool’s solution to that, with the club putting in framework for a deal last year.
They had made tentative checks on him during the winter window, which were rebuffed.
In February, Liverpool informed the player’s representative Ze Maria Neis that the possible outlay – then £62m and rising – was too high while Roma were not willing sellers at that point.
The need for the Reds to recruit a pedigreed keeper was emphasised afterwards with Loris Karius making two awful errors in the Champions League defeat to Real Madrid, in which he suffered concussion.
The German, one short of a half-century of games for the club, has struggled to shake off his Kiev nightmare during pre-season.
He has been the target of ironic applause from his own supporters and ridicule from that of the opposition.
Simon Mignolet hasn’t convinced as Liverpool’s No. 1 either, despite being afforded 202 appearances.
Danny Ward, meanwhile, is on the verge of joining Leicester City for £12.5m, with the Reds including a 20% sell-on clause in their terms.
‘He’s one of the world’s best’ ?
Jürgen Klopp simply could not pass up the chance to sign @Alissonbecker: https://t.co/gN0qvFl8QO pic.twitter.com/EEZv5MYTGT
— Liverpool FC (@LFC) July 19, 2018
Alisson’s blockbuster fee almost doubles the British-record outlay for a goalkeeper, with Ederson having cost Manchester City £34.7m last summer.
It also eclipses the €52m Juventus parted with to sign Gianluigi Buffon from Parma in 2001 by €22m.
“At one point in the last few weeks it came up, the opportunity to sign one of the world’s best goalkeepers – then it’s not a long thought, to be honest, it’s only that you need to have a little talk with the owners! They were quite excited, so we did it,” Klopp told Liverpoolfc.com.
“I think it’s something we have to do. He has nothing to do with the price, we have nothing to do with the price, it’s the market, that’s how it is and we will not think a lot about it.
“It shows the value of goalkeepers, of course, in this moment. It will happen a lot in the next few weeks I guess and that’s it, so we are really happy to have him here now.”
