Why Liverpool must offload Lazar Markovic in the January window
According to Liverpool Echo, Liverpool’s £2.9million deal with Anderlecht for Lazar Markovic fell through at the penultimate moment. Markovic, who joined Liverpool from Benfica in the summer of 2014 for a fee of £20million, has arguably emerged as the biggest flop for the club in the last decade.
Although the Reds were close to offloading him this summer, the move has collapsed. With the transfer window shut, it looks like Markovic will continue at Anfield for now. However, once the January window reopens, Liverpool must do everything to sanction a sale.
The Serbian made his debut for Liverpool in 2014 and registered 19 appearances in the Premier League, scoring 2 goals. That was the last time he played for Liverpool. Subsequently, the player was loaned out to Fenerbahce in the 2015/16 season and that was followed by unsuccessful loan stints at Sporting Lisbon, Hull City and Anderlecht.
To be honest, Markovic’s Liverpool career was effectively over once he was loaned out for the second successive season. Deemed as a player with huge potential when he signed for Liverpool, the Serbian has failed to make a mark at Anfield and has been a massive disappointment for the Reds.
Furthermore, Markovic’s poor work rate and casual attitude during training sessions do not earn him any favours. He does not have a great disciplinary record either, having received a red card in the Champions League for improper conduct which saw him receive a four-match European ban.
A career that promised to take off and reach great heights after an impressive season for Benfica in 2013, has fallen apart miserably and an exit should be ideal for either party.
Playing under different managers and under different philosophies clearly hasn’t helped the Serbian resurrect his career and a permanent move to a different club in January should help Markovic get his career back on track.
Liverpool have been one of the biggest spenders this year, with Klopp bringing in radical reinforcements to bolster the squad and challenge for the title. Liverpool have a settled forward line and there is no chance for anyone in the squad to replace Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane. James Milner has performed consistently for the Reds since the last season which has largely limited Adam Lallana’s involvement.
Hence, it is difficult to comprehend how the 24-year-old Serbian could break into Klopp’s plans, let alone the first-team set-up.
