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Liverpool may be following Mikel Arteta tactic in abandoning Jude Bellingham transfer
Liverpool have moved away from their original plans to make a move for Jude Bellingham.
Liverpool's reported decision to opt out of a move for Jude Bellingham this summer suggests the club could be following in the same footsteps as Mikel Arteta at Arsenal in going for players with more Premier League experience. Bellingham was already being heralded as the lord and saviour of Anfield with fans mocking up the midfielder in a Liverpool kit.
Months of speculation had seen Liverpool emerge as the frontrunners for his signature, but those same supporters were left shell-shocked at news the club were backing out of a move for Bellingham due to the high fee needed to make a deal happen. Borussia Dortmund are said to be demanding a price in the region of £120million and Liverpool seemingly see more value in using that money on multiple players.
And their reported list of alternatives has a dominant theme - most are already playing in the Premier League. Declan Rice, Mason Mount, Conor Gallagher, Alexis Mac Allister and Moises Caicedo are all said to be on Liverpool's radar and are potentially available for a fraction of the price of Bellingham.
Liverpool are in need of freshening things up in midfield with Thiago Alcantara the only signing in that area since 2018. While Bellingham has all the right attributes to make him one of the world's best midfielders, signing him would likely mean Liverpool would be unable to bring in a second option.
There's also the old adage of whether Bellingham will be able to replicate his performances from the Bundesliga in the Premier League. Manchester City and Manchester United have had mixed success from signing top talents from Dortmund with Erling Haaland hitting the ground running while Jadon Sancho has struggled to live up to his high price tag.
But Arsenal, who sit top of the league, have bided their time in the transfer market in recent years with Mikel Arteta opting for players with Premier League experience in Gabriel Jesus, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Leandro Trossard and Jorginho. Speaking recently, Arteta admitted that those signings have played a huge part in their success this season.
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“They give you stability,” Arteta said. “Because they have already done it, because they have already experienced those (challenges) and that facilitates a lot that process, especially when you have five, six, seven new players.
"When a few of them are integrated already quickly to the pace, to the demands and to the understanding that is needed in the league. We knew that with those players that was what we hoped we were going to get and it has been proven that it was the right decision.”
It's a lesson Liverpool may be able to learn from this summer and may already be doing so by opting against a move for Bellingham.