Liverpool is said to be in the market for a player to replace Erling Haaland. Not only that, but he has already experienced a “Darwin Nez moment.”
In the coming years, Julian Ward will only have one job at Liverpool. The Liverpool sporting director must reduce the average age of the squad and rejuvenate the team with a youthful injection.
Roberto Firmino, 31, is one player who may not fit into those plans. With his contract expiring at the end of the season, and despite a string of excellent performances in recent months, it appears that the Brazilian’s time at Anfield may be coming to an end.
In a front line where there is already a 30-year-old in Mohamed Salah, Firmino could be sacrificed in order for Liverpool to bring in a younger successor who can take on his mantle and dominate at Anfield for the next decade.
One option that seems like a realistic candidate for Liverpool to target is Red Bull Salzburg’s, Noah Okafor. According to Sky Germany’s chief reporter Florian Plettenberg, a January move is possible for the youngster, who is eyed by Liverpool, Manchester City, and AC Milan among others.
Okafor is a realistic profile due to his age and price tag. Valued between €35-40m (£31-35m), that’s undoubtedly affordable for Liverpool, especially since the Reds are renowned for having amicable relations with Red Bull, which could help smooth out negotiations.
Just over the summer, Liverpool played in friendlies against both RB Leipzig and Red Bull Salzburg, and in the latter, Okafor certainly made a mark, assisting Salzburg’s winner for Benjamin Šeško, which may well have been his ‘Darwin Núñez moment’ in front of Jürgen Klopp.
Energetic and pacey, Okafor fits the bill for Liverpool because of his playing style. In the Austrian Bundesliga, he has averaged 0.85 goals per 90 this season, which makes him the second most productive player in the league. Predominantly playing off the left, Okafor is adept at breaking into the box and takes a high volume of touches in the penalty area, averaging 4.22 per 90 this season as per Wyscout.
But he doesn’t just linger around the box, in the manner of a certain Erling Haaland, in whose Salzburg footsteps he is following. He also drops deep and is capable of using his speed in one vs one situation to progress the ball further; he has made 3.13 progressive runs per 90 this season, which is the fourth-highest in the league.
A similar player to Luis Díaz, what Liverpool will like about Okafor is that he isn’t just restricted to playing on the left. Last season, he played mostly as a center-forward, either as the sole striker for Salzburg or just behind, and the season before that he frequently played on the right, where Liverpool currently has a shortage of options behind Mohamed Salah.
He scored his first-ever hat-trick for Salzburg from the right wing, and also netted his first international goal for Switzerland from that side. While he may be more effective cutting onto his right foot from the left, he is still fairly productive on the right flank, and even more so as a center-forward in the Haaland or Núñez role.
Okafor has made 37 goal contributions in 57 games playing as a center-forward in his career so far, which is the most he has made in any position, and last season he looked promising in that position for Salzburg, scoring three goals in just 345 minutes in the Champions League.
His form in Europe’s elite competition will be another factor why the 22-year-old should tempt Liverpool. This convinced Klopp and the recruitment team to part with big money for Núñez, and it is a useful marker of how well quality will transfer to a higher league.
Okafor has scored six goals in his last 12 Champions League games in just 816 minutes, scoring 0.66 goals per 90, including against AC Milan and Chelsea this season. In the current Champions League campaign, Okafor has also stood out for his dribbling ability, ranking in the top ten players for successful dribbles completed (among those who average at least 4.5 dribbles per 90) with 60 percent.
In the Austrian League, Okafor has also demonstrated an ability to create opportunities for his teammates on a regular basis. While he may have a high volume of touches in the penalty area, not all of those lead to shooting opportunities for himself, although he does average a high volume of shots per 90 (3.01) as well, purely because of Salzburg’s dominance in the league. Okafor ranks in third place for key passes per 90 in the league (1.2) and this season he has been particularly decisive in laying off passes or putting in crosses for his teammates from inside the box or out on the left flank.
Crucially, his crosses will often be taken with his left foot, which is supposedly his weaker foot, and he has demonstrated signs of being an ‘ambipedal’ player, which would make him a rarity in the Liverpool attacking line. Most of the club’s current options, like Salah, rely on their dominant foot.
Of course, there is an element of risk when it comes to purchasing players from the Austrian Bundesliga. For every Haaland, there is a Takumi Minamino, and Salzburg’s attacking players are definitely harder to scrutinize because of the sheer domination their side exerts in the league. This means it’s important not to delve into the numbers too much.
However, Okafor’s ability to make a mark in Europe as well certainly makes him more of an attractive candidate and closer to Haaland than Minamino on the transfer spectrum. If Liverpool can secure him for £35m or less, it would be shrewd business from Ward — and potentially another Núñez moment.
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