19-cap aerial monster was ‘keen’ on mid-season Liverpool move until fateful ‘stumbling block’

Dutch defender Lutsharel Geertruida is understood to have been ‘keen’ on a prospective move to Liverpool in the January transfer window until it was shut down.

The 19-cap Netherlands international is on a season-long loan at Sunderland from RB Leipzig, and the Reds had been exploring a late-window loan move of their own for the versatile right-back, with discussions understood to have taken place behind the scenes.

However, the Monday night deadline came and went without any transaction taking place, and the 25-year-old remained at the Stadium of Light, coming off the bench for the final few minutes of the Black Cat’s 3-0 win over Burnley.

Geertruida had been ‘keen’ on proposed Liverpool move

In an article for The Athletic on Tuesday morning, Andy Jones outlined that Geertruida had been eager to reunite with his former Feyenoord boss Arne Slot at Anfield, but there were too many complexities to be resolved at such a late stage in the transfer window.

He wrote: ‘Sporting director Richard Hughes explored a number of options ahead of the deadline, including trying to get Lutsharel Geertruida on loan for the rest of the season. The Dutchman was keen, having played under Slot at Feyenoord, and his versatility was viewed as an asset, as he can play right-back, centre-back or in midfield.

‘However, it proved too complex to pull off, because Geertruida was already on loan at Sunderland from RB Leipzig. Liverpool would have needed to pay compensation to convince Sunderland to terminate their loan arrangement, but the northeast club also needed to recruit a replacement and that was a stumbling block with the time pressures.’

Liverpool could’ve done with Geertruida in the short-term

That the 25-year-old was already out on loan added further complexity to a prospective deal which would’ve been difficult to pull off anyway due to Sunderland not having time to source and recruit a replacement if he had left Wearside.

Liverpool went into the January transfer window with three senior right-backs to call upon but ended it with only one due to the injuries to Conor Bradley and Jeremie Frimpong, and Calvin Ramsay has barely been given a look-in by Slot.

Geertruida – who ranked in the top 1% for percentage of aerial duels won per 90 minutes in the Bundesliga last season (FBref, via Sunderland Echo) – would’ve given the Reds an ideal natural right-back to compensate for Bradley’s absence until the summer, along with cover in other positions.

With the Black Cats unwilling to terminate their loan agreement, though, it means that LFC will need to plug the right-back gap with midfielders for the next few games before Frimpong returns, and then rely on the injury-plagued Dutchman to stay fit for the rest of the campaign.

It was simply too late in the transfer window for a deal for Geertruida to come off, but the 25-year-old’s apparent eagerness to join Liverpool may well be noted by Anfield chiefs for a future date if they were to reignite their interest in him further down the line…

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