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Liverpool get shock go-ahead to pursue hitman that would’ve sunk Chelsea

Liverpool have seemingly been given the surprise green light to pursue a Genk goal machine who “would have scored against 10 men” of Chelsea two weeks ago, per a report.

The Reds were tentatively linked with bolstering their forward ranks in the summer window. Jurgen Klopp can call upon a fantastic four in Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and Diogo Jota. However, reliable depth pieces beyond that quartet are sorely lacking.

Divock Origi and Takumi Minamino are the next cabs off the rank with Harvey Elliott utilised in midfield this season. Xherdan Shaqiri left for Lyon on a permanent deal after an injury-ravaged spell on Merseyside.

Origi and Minamino will likely have a bigger role to play this season than many expect given Salah and Mane’s looming absences in the 2021 AFCON.

But of more immediate concern to Klopp will have been his side’s inability to break down a Chelsea side that were a man light for over 45 minutes two weeks ago.

Liverpool huffed and puffed but failed to find the breakthrough in a disappointing home draw. That has led to comments surprisingly surfacing from Belgium through Genk Technical Director Dimitri de Conde.

The Genk chief observed the contest and believes Liverpool lacked a different dimension in attack. What’s more, he believes current Genk hitman Paul Onuachu would’ve been the perfect man to fire Liverpool to glory on that afternoon.

De Conde told Belgian outlet Het Belang van Limburg (via the Mirror): “Did you see Liverpool against Chelsea? Liverpool have the best strikers, but none with the same profile as Onuachu.

“He would have scored against 10 men. I’m not saying that Paul would play 90 minutes every week in Liverpool. But a club like that could really use him.”

The towering Onuachu stands at 6ft 7in tall and boasts a superb scoring record in Belgium. He notched 33 league goals last term to bag the golden boot award and scooped the Belgian Professional Footballer of the Year prize.

It comes as somewhat of a surprise to see De Conde touting his most prolific striker to another club. Though at 27, he is perhaps of the belief the time is right to sanction a sale while his market value is at its highest.

There has been no indication Liverpool are interested in the Nigeria international who was previously on West Ham’s radar.

Five former Manchester United players still available as free agents

Jovial Van Dijk laughs off Netherlands injury scare

Meanwhile, Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk has insisted that he has not suffered any lasting effects following an ankle injury scare for the Netherlands.

The 30-year-old went into the air after a challenge from Halil Dervisoglu during his country’s 6-1 win over Turkey on Tuesday. Upon returning to the ground, though, he stayed there for a brief spell. Injury would have proved the worst outcome for Van Dijk following his nightmare with time on the sidelines in the past year.

However, the centre-back allayed concerns over his fitness when cracking a joke.

“I’m fine, luckily. I’m already over it,” Van Dijk told Goal. “Maybe because I am so big, they think I am acting.

Asked what he meant by that statement, he added: “Because when I go down, it goes in quite a slow way.”

READ MORE: Paper Talk: Man Utd step aside to leave Liverpool on pole for star who would relish Anfield switch

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