"Can't believe he's leaving so soon", "Definitely Saudi" – Liverpool fans feel key player is leaving as he drops alleged social media hint
Liverpool faithful have reacted to Thiago Alcantara's recent Instagram bio decision, claiming that the midfielder could be on his way out soon.
The Reds are currently in the midst of a big midfield revamp with two new arrivals already announced. They have signed Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai for a combined fee of £95 million so far.
As a result, some Liverpool supporters are of the opinion that a major name in their midfield might be offloaded to make proper room for all the summer signings. With Thiago removing the club's name from his Instagram handle, the fans have gone on an overdrive on social media.
Here's how the Reds fans reacted to the latest Instagram development:
Thiago has removed LFC from his Instagram bio. https://t.co/k5fufT5I4a
@AnfieldEdition For pure talent Thiago is top3 in the world as a midfielder. If the plan is that he’ll stay for 4-5 seasons then fine. If the plan is to part ways next summer then sell now
@AnfieldEdition Good, he needs shipping, i don’t care how good of a player someone is if he can’t be available for major chunk of the season
@AnfieldEdition NAH NO WAY HES LEAVING THIS SOON
@AnfieldEdition Definitely he’s going to Saudi.
We have had enough of his injury
Thiago, 32, has failed to establish himself as a regular at the Reds due to a host of injuries. Since arriving from Bayern Munich for £20 million in 2020, he has missed a whopping 66 matches across all competitions.
A right-footed central operator, Thiago is in the final year of his contract at Anfield. Of late, he has popped up on the radar of two Saudi teams, as per Turkish reporter Ekrem Konur. The Spaniard has also attracted transfer interest from Fenerbahce, as per GOAL journalist Neil Jones.
Overall, the former Barcelona man has registered three goals and six assists in 97 appearances across competitions for Jurgen Klopp's side.
Meanwhile, Liverpool are keeping tabs on Khephren Thuram, Romeo Lavia, Ryan Gravenberch, Emmanuel Kouadio Kone and Gabri Veiga.
Fabrizio Romano sheds light on Liverpool-linked midfielder's future amid host of links
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Fabrizio Romano provided insight into Romeo Lavia's immediate future at Southampton. He elaborated:
"July is going to be a crucial month for Romeo Lavia. For Lavia, guys, it's important to mention that Chelsea and Manchester United are still keeping an eye on his situation at Southampton, but what I told you earlier was the transfer interest of Liverpool."
Shedding light on Arsenal's interest in the Belgian, Romano continued:
"Arsenal are there. Arsenal are still interested in Lavia but they are now 100 percent focused on closing deals for Declan Rice and Jurrien Timber. But, Lavia remains one of the targets in case both Granit Xhaka and Thomas Partey leave the club, so it probably takes some time before Arsenal can enter the race."
Claiming that the Reds are in the race to rope in Lavia, Romano added:
"Liverpool are now into the race. They are interested, they are working on signing Lavia and they are having direct contacts on both player and club side. So, the Reds and Arsenal are both in the race and are the two clubs who are pushing at the moment."
Lavia, 19, joined Southampton from Manchester City for an initial £10.5 million in 2022. He scored once in 35 matches for them last campaign.