Liverpool have opened talks to sign £48m “young Sadio Mane”

Liverpool have lost their way this season, but it’s not as bad as those dark days under Brendan Rodgers, is it?

There are parallels between Arne Slot’s second season and that post-apocalyptic 2014/15 campaign, Liverpool ruined in the wake of their agonising title miss.

Luis Suarez fuelled that one, and Mohamed Salah’s incredible and potent effort last year drove the Reds to their first title since Jurgen Klopp draped the curtain on his Anfield tenure.

The difference, of course, is that Slot led his side all the way, lifting the Premier League and establishing himself as one of the world’s best coaches.

However, as before, so much has gone wrong this season, and now, Liverpool need to spend big for the second successive summer.

Liverpool making formal move for new winger

On the right, Liverpool need to replace Salah, and that’s not going to be easy. The Egyptian has been a shell of his once imperious self, and RB Leipzig’s Yan Diomande has been identified as the perfect man to replace him, albeit for around £85m, having only put one foot onto the major stage.

Liverpool need more than just a right-sided forward, though, with Cody Gakpo flattering to deceive all season and Rio Ngumoha, 17, still untrusted with minutes to match the best of them at Anfield.

According to soccer dataLiverpool are interested in signing Bazoumana Toure from Hoffenheim this summer, having seemingly opened talks after registering ‘formal interest’.

The Ivory Coast international, who is only 20, is valued at €55m (£48m), and there’s little to suggest that he doesn’t have the potential to match or even eclipse Diomande as the brightest emergent talent from the Bundesliga.

Who knows, with such pace and burgeoning output down the left wing, he could be Slot’s new version of Luis Diaz at Liverpool.

Why Bazoumana Toure can be Liverpool’s next Diaz

Liverpool have quality in attack, but Florian Wirtz is still adapting to the Premier League, Alexander Isak is yet to sustain a vein of clinical form, and Hugo Ekitike is out for the long term against rupturing his Achilles against PSG.

Should Slot hope to prove his doubters wrong and bounce back (unlike Rodgers), then his frontline needs more impetus, and Toure could provide that quality for the Reds, hailed as “one of the most exciting young wingers in European football” by journalist Bence Bocsak.

The rising star’s pace and potency down the left channel have compelled Liverpool into registering their interest, and with Arsenal and Bayern Munich both hot on his trail, something needs to be done quickly.

Liverpool sold Diaz to Bayern for £65.5m last summer, and while there were sound reasons behind that decision, FSG have failed to replace the Colombian down the left, and Toure could be the perfect addition to challenge Gakpo and Ngumoha.

Across 29 Bundesliga matches this season, he has scored five goals and supplied nine assists. In terms of physicality, Toure ticks a lot of boxes, winning five duels per game.

This unique skill set has even seen the young winger described as a “young Sadio Mane” by the aforementioned Bocsak, so you can see why Liverpool have such a vested interest in him.

Whether Toure fulfils his potential and hits Diaz/Mane-esque heights on Merseyside remains to be seen, but he is an elite prospect who could develop into one of the standout stars of the Premier League.

Numerous times this season, the Ivorian winger has demonstrated incredible potential, and with such innate creativity, sharp dribbling and combativeness in the duel, he might just be the perfect pick for a Liverpool side in need of a wide range of different additions this summer.