3 weeks ago
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Joe Gomez's route out of Anfield might have opened back up as a result of Liverpool striking an agreement to sign Marc Guehi from Crystal Palace.
It's been a dramatic deadline day for Liverpool, with the Reds closing in on deals for both Alexander Isak and Guehi ahead of the window closing at 7pm BST. Liverpool made a breakthrough in its pursuit of Guehi fewer than four hours before the deadline, as the Reds struck an agreement to sign him for £35 million ($47 million).
Guehi's arrival will take the number of center-backs in Arne Slot's squad up to five, with Virgil van Dijk, Ibrahima Konate, Gomez and Giovanni Leoni the others. According to the Mirror, that means Liverpool is ready to let Gomez leave is an offer materializes late in the window.
Gomez came off the bench during Liverpool's win over Arsenal on Sunday, after which Van Dijk praised the 28-year-old for his performance amid the possibility of an impending exit.
"When he came on, in the circumstances that he is in, he was outstanding," Van Dijk told reporters at Anfield. "I speak to him quite a lot. I know it wasn't easy but that says a lot about him as a person and a player.
"Only appreciation. He is a good friend of my, as everyone knows, and I'm just very pleased for him that he could do it today.
"Hopefully he can do a lot more for us this season. He is my friend so I want him to stay, of course, but it doesn't work like that. I'm not the boss and it's not a friendly business here.
"Let's see what happens. Of course I want him to stay, but as a friend, as a player, let's see."
As for Guehi, his impending exit will no doubt come as a huge disappointment to Palace manager Oliver Glasner, who had repeatedly preached the importance of Palace keeping hold of its captain beyond the closure of the window.
Speaking after Palace's 3-0 win against Aston Villa on Sunday, in which Guehi scored, Glasner said: "I told the chairman we have to keep Marc if we want to play a successful season.
"We have no chance to find the right replacement in one day. We all agreed that we just sell Marc if we have the right replacement in the building.
"We wanted a replacement by 1 July. It is 31 August and we have no replacement. We have this agreement so it is clear from me. He is such a crucial player. He is one of our key players - he is our captain."
Guehi himself was asked about his mindset amid constant speculation surrounding his future. He responded: "I am OK. I don't like the limelight too much, there are a lot of cameras in my face all the time and constantly talking about me but I'm glad I have got a good club and good teammates around me.
"When you focus on what's important, which is the football, it makes it a lot easier."
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