Liverpool Opinion: Reds should seriously consider David Marshall as their new No.2 next season
According to The Scottish Sun, Liverpool have emerged as shock contenders to sign 34-year-old Scottish international shot-stopper David Marshall from Hull City on a free transfer.
The Scottish Sun understands that Liverpool are currently on the lookout for a cheap and experienced understudy to undisputed No.1 Alisson and the Reds have identified the Scotsman as a potential transfer target heading into the summer window.
Marshall, however, is not the only goalkeeper to have been linked with a move to Anfield in recent weeks, with out-of-contract West Ham bench-warmer Adrian also being considered as a suitable candidate for the No.2 role. (h/t Scottish Sun)
Liverpool are likely to lose the services of their former No.1 Simon Mignolet, who is apparently sick and tired of watching the prime years of his career being wasted away by constantly sitting on the sidelines.
The Belgian has made it clear that he wants to secure a move away from Anfield this summer after making only a couple of appearances in the domestic cup competitions this past season.
The 31-year-old’s situation at Anfield has put several Premier League clubs on red-alert, with newly-promoted outfit Norwich City, Bournemouth and Watford amongst those prepared to offer him an escape route. Jurgen Klopp, though, is determined to get a good price for his former No.1, with the Reds slapping a £15 million price-tag on the wantaway shot-stopper. (h/t Eastern Daily Press)
Meanwhile, Liverpool’s links with David Marshall probably comes as a bit of shock to all the fans at Anfield given that he is already 34 and very much nearing the twilight of his career. However, Klopp and company are likely to face a tough job in recruiting a new No.2 at Anfield considering that whoever comes in would know very well that he would probably get only a couple of games to play in the first team throughout the season.
It is never easy to find a player who would be willing to warm the benches for such large chunks of the campaign, but Liverpool can hardly do anything about it, with Alisson very much in the thick of things. It is highly unlikely that any top-quality goalkeeper in his prime would be content to settle for such a ridiculous bit-part role at Anfield and David Marshall isn’t the worst shot-stopper, after all.
A youth product of Celtic, Marshall spent five seasons at his boyhood club before moving across the border to join Norwich City in 2007. Following a fruitful two-year spell with the Canaries, the Scotsman moved on to Cardiff City, where he went on to establish himself as a seasoned campaigner and accumulated an impressive 87 clean sheets in 278 appearances across all competitions.
Marshall signed for Hull City back in the summer of 2016 and has made a total of 67 appearances for the Tigers till date. The 34-year-old had a mixed 2018-19 season in the Championship given that he racked up as many as 11 clean sheets in 43 appearances but also ended up conceding 60 goals, numbers which are quite high by his standards.
With a wealth of Premier League, Championship and Scottish top-flight experience under his belt, the 27-cap Scottish international has quite a good profile for a goalkeeper of his age and Liverpool have every reason to consider him as a potential candidate for the No.2 role behind Alisson next season. Loris Karius’ career at Liverpool is as good as over and the Reds would hardly get a more experienced and proven shot-stopper to play a back-up role in their first-team.
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This is a move that doesn’t look good on paper, but in all honesty, Marshall perfectly fits the bill given his age and experience, and there is no reason why Liverpool shouldn’t go ahead with the deal.
