Amidst the rush of a midfield overhaul at Liverpool, Jurgen Klopp has reportedly asked the club to first seal a deal for a ‘special’ midfielder. According to latest reports, Klopp is eager to extend James Milner’s contract at Anfield. The Reds’ manager is on the lookout for midfielders this summer, as Liverpool look to rebuild their midfield.
As a number of players look set to leave the club this summer, Jude Bellingham is said to be Liverpool’s priority transfer target. Klopp, on the other hand, isn’t ready to let Milner go just yet, and is reportedly pushing the board to reach an agreement with the Englishman who is out of contract at the end of the season and has been linked with a move away.
Klopp pushing Liverpool to ‘replicate’ last summer’s deal for Milner
James Milner, 37, has defied his age in the Liverpool shirt this season, making 32 appearances after signing a one-year extension last summer. And according to Football Insider’s Peter O’Rourke, Klopp is a huge fan of the veteran midfielder and is urging the Liverpool board to ‘replicate the offer and table another one-year extension for the 2023/24 season’.
Reports add, the German believes ‘Milner’s leadership and off-the-field presence is crucial to Liverpool’s dressing room atmosphere and believes it would be a huge loss for the club if he left this summer.’ Milner was one of Klopp’s first signings at Anfield, joining on a free transfer from Manchester City, and has since won it all with the Reds in a Premier League, Champions League, Super Cup, Club World Cup, FA Cup and Carabao Cup title.
The Liverpool boss had told the reporters in January that the former England midfielder was keen to continue playing at the highest level, also referring to him as a ‘incredibly important player. Speaking of the three-time Premier League winner’s future at the club, Klopp had said:
“He (Milner) is an incredibly important player and in this game (Wolves) you saw on the pitch as well. It is not that Milly expects to play 64 games a season but in 64 games a season Milly could be extremely important. That is how it is. Milly has reached 600 games and most of them for Liverpool.
“Even a player who had a few clubs can end up at his club and I would consider Liverpool as his club and I am pretty sure the club should use his character and his mindset because it is really special. There might be more fancy players out there but no one with a similar mind-set and that makes him incredibly valuable for us. And it is not because I am too loyal. It is just a fact.”
Milner’s output on the field has waned in recent years, and at the age of 37, some have wondered if he should hang his boots from club football as well. With Liverpool eyeing a clearance sale to raise funds for bringing in new reinforcements, players like James Milner, Naby Keita, and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain have been expected to be released by the Reds when their contracts expire in the summer. Klopp, on the other hand, believes that the Reds should keep James Milner for a little longer, arguing that his role off the pitch won’t be replicated by his potential replacement.