Under Arne Slot, Liverpool were looking to secure a defensive midfielder for the bottom of midfield, but failed to acquire Spanish midfielder Martin Zubimendi.
After that, no good news arrived, and the first reinforcement was unexpectedly Valencia goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili.
Liverpool got a successor to Brazilian goalkeeper Alisson Becker, but the summer transfer window seemed to end without the reinforcements in attackers and centre-backs that they had initially targeted, but they did bring in Italian international Federico Chiesa, who had been out of the squad at Juventus and was also being followed by Barcelona.
Revealing the story behind the move, the 26-year-old attacker said he immediately shook his head at Liverpool’s offer. His family are also positive about the new challenge in England and are eagerly awaiting the moment when they can experience ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ at Anfield.
“I’m so happy to be a Liverpool player. When Richard Hughes called me and he said: ‘Do you want to join Liverpool?’ – and the coach (Slot) called me – I said yes immediately because I know the history of this club, I know what it represents to the fans.”
“So, I’m so happy and I can’t wait to get started. It was [an easy decision] for a lot of reasons, I felt the people I talked to put a lot of faith and trust in me and that is what I wanted, so it’s really great to be here. It’s a dream come true for me to play for Liverpool and in the Premier League, which is the best in the world.”
“[My family] were all happy, it was an easy decision because of Liverpool. We have enjoyed every bit. I still need to talk to my family because it has been a busy day. My wife is with me and soon as I said Liverpool she said yes that she would come with me and that it was a fantastic opportunity for my career and for our family.”
“The people here are amazing, I felt great empathy and I have already done a lot of tests but that is part of my job. I just want to say one thing as I arrived on the plane, I saw Anfield and as soon as I saw Anfield I said to my wife: ‘Put the song on – You’ll Never Walk Alone – because I want to imagine myself playing there and hearing the chant of the fans and this song.’
“I will have chills or shivers when it is sung [by the fans] and it will be so emotional for me and my family. [Slot] told me about his football style, what he wants from me, what he wants from the team and I said to him that I am coming to help the team to win trophies, which is the most important thing. It is what the Liverpool fans want the most.”
“In Liverpool there is a lot of competition because it is a big club, a top club, one of the best in the world. So I know that I come here with a lot of competition in my road too, players like Mo Salah, Luis Diaz, Cody Gakpo, Diogo Jota, Darwin Nunez, I know what they are capable of. But I know what I am capable of too, so I am here to give my best and to the fans too.”
LFCTV