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As it stands, Liverpool’s only signing of the summer could be a player who does not even join the club until 2026, with Giorgi Mamardashvili the target.
Though talks with Valencia stalled, if proposals go through the Georgian goalkeeper will stay on loan at the Mestalla before eventually making the £34 million move to Anfield.
In a decidedly quiet summer, jibes that new sporting director Richard Hughes has struggled to satisfy the demand for transfers clearly ring true.
But a delayed deal to bring Mamardashvili to Merseyside should not be undersold, as the 6’6″ stopper is one of the most promising goalkeepers in Europe.
He came to the attention of most for his performances with Georgia at Euro 2024, but those within Liverpool’s recruitment team will have been aware of the 23-year-old long before that.
With more than a century of appearances under his belt for Valencia, Mamardashvili has produced a convincing bank of data for the club’s researchers to pore over.
Why Mamardashvili is on the radar
Arriving in Valencia from Dinamo Tbilisi in 2021, following loan spells with FC Rustavi and Locomotive Tbilisi in his native Georgia, he initially joined as fourth-choice goalkeeper.
But having made a big impression in pre-season he started that campaign as No. 1, with his loan deal made permanent by the end of the year.
Now, after three full seasons as first choice at Valencia, Mamardashvili has developed into a phenomenal shot-stopper whose dominance of the penalty area has attracted interest from a number of top clubs.
It is easy to see why: he is quick off his line, spreads himself well and possesses outstanding agility and reflexes, while his height and reach make him an imposing challenge for opponents when claiming crosses.
There is less evidence of his ability on the ball, largely owing to the systems employed by Valencia and Georgia, but speaking to Anfield Watch, former Dinamo Tbilisi scout Mikha Gabechava noted it as an area of major improvement.
“Regarding his ability to play with his feet, I have to say that he has improved significantly over the past couple of years, mainly because he has a fantastic goalkeeper coach at Valencia,” Gabechava said.
“Even in his early days at Valencia, he used to make mistakes and wasn’t as effective in that aspect.
“However, now you can clearly see that he’s more comfortable and confident on the ball.”
Those with a knowledge of underlying data have compared his current level of output with that of Alisson before the Brazilian made his £65 million switch from AS Roma to Liverpool six years ago.
Succession planning
Liverpool were convinced back then that Alisson had shown enough to be worth a world-record deal for a goalkeeper, rating him above another target in Jan Oblak.
Alisson was regarded within the club as a transformative signing akin to that of Virgil van Dijk six months previous, and having now won every trophy possible, that belief has been vindicated.
It has stuck in the craw of some supporters, then, that Liverpool are readily pursuing another goalkeeper with a clear plan to succeed the current No. 1.
That is particularly evident as, with Caoimhin Kelleher and Vitezslav Jaros already in place behind Alisson, it is a position which is arguably their lowest transfer priority at present.
A difficulty in landing an elite-level No. 6 and a lack of progress when it comes to contract extensions for Van Dijk, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Mohamed Salah have underlined this point.
But the initiative shown in identifying Mamardashvili and moving to get the deal done ahead of time, including arranging valuable experience in the meantime, should be commended.
It should be acknowledged that the notion of Liverpool taking their eye off the ball when it came to other key areas began prior to this summer’s changing of the guard in the boardroom.
With Michael Edwards returning as part of Fenway Sports Group and Hughes providing stability in his long-term position of sporting director – after a short run with Jorg Schmadtke in the role – the club are working to restore order.
That, and new head coach Arne Slot‘s desire to assess the squad thoroughly before any decisions are made, could explain the lack of activity in the summer transfer window.
And a proposed deal to bring Mamardashvili to Liverpool in 2026, when he would be nearly 26, is their strongest sign yet of succession planning in action.
Alisson should be going nowhere yet!
But there should be no acceptance that this is an imminent handover; Alisson will only turn 32 in October and last year told journalists that he was “still young for a goalkeeper” and could play well into his late 30s.
A clean sheet in Saturday’s 2-0 win over Ipswich was the perfect start to his seventh season with the club, and though he was only required to make two saves, he performed with the same assuredness that has placed him among Liverpool’s best-ever goalkeepers.
Alisson has already shown he is perfectly suited to Slot’s new system, with his ability in possession lending itself to a composed buildup, while his raw qualities as a goalkeeper speak for themselves.
There is still a strong claim for the Brazil international to be considered the best in the world in his position.
If the club do formally announce their agreement with Valencia this summer, however, it will force fans to confront the sad reality that Alisson will not be with the Reds forever.
Links with the Saudi Pro League persist and there is a lingering sense that he will eventually look to leave the rainy climes of north-west England.
Departed head of goalkeeping John Achterberg has even suggested Alisson could have left the club as early as this summer, had the decision been made to part ways with goalkeeper coach Claudio Taffarel as part of the post-Jurgen Klopp reshuffle.
While there remain doubts over the futures of Van Dijk, Alexander-Arnold and Salah – and how, if they were to leave, Liverpool would replace three of their most important players – there should at least be a relief that succession is already mapped out with Alisson.
Fortunately, it won’t be a sudden shift for fans to come to terms with, as the world’s best No. 1 is going nowhere any time soon.
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