Report: Liverpool striker search could take mind-bending twist with ‘late interest’ in £32m enigma | OneFootball

Reports on Thursday have linked Liverpool with a shock potential move for a Premier League striker in the final four days of the summer transfer window.

The man on the moon knows by now that Alexander Isak is the centre-forward that the Reds want to bring in before Monday’s deadline, but Newcastle remain defiant in their refusal to sell the 25-year-old despite his clear public desire to leave St James’ Park.

With time running out for Richard Hughes to secure a deal for the Sweden international, attention could yet turn towards a market opportunity that few (if any) would’ve foreseen not so long ago.

Liverpool could make shock late move for Nicolas Jackson

According to Matt Law for The Telegraph, Chelsea are reluctant to finalise an exit from Stamford Bridge for Nicolas Jackson before Isak’s future is clarified, in case Newcastle or Liverpool are ‘forced to make a late move’ for the Senegal striker.

Bayern Munich are believed to be the frontrunners for the 24-year-old’s signature, and he’s understood to be keen on a move to Germany, but the Blues are determined to hold out for the situation surrounding the Magpies’ Swedish centre-forward to be sorted out first.

The west London club are confident they can ‘afford to hold their nerve’ over the ex-Villarreal marksman as AC Milan close in on a move for Christopher Nkunku, and depending on what happens with Isak, there could be ‘late interest’ from either Tyneside or Merseyside in Jackson.

It remains to be seen whether or not Liverpool make a sudden late move for an alternative target if the Newcastle striker proves to be unattainable.

(Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)

Surely Liverpool won’t sidewind to a move for the enigmatic Jackson?

While the story comes from a reputable source, it seems almost incomprehensible that the Reds would sidewind to a knee-jerk raid for Jackson this late in the transfer window.

The Senegalese forward has been something of an enigma since joining Chelsea for £32m two years ago, delighting and infuriating Blues supporters in equal measure throughout that time.

A return of 30 goals in 81 games isn’t terrible, and Thierry Henry suggested last year that the 24-year-old is ‘on his way’ to becoming ‘the real deal’. However, for all of the talents that he has displayed, there have also been moments of baffling frustration.

In the last four months, he was sent off in crunch games against Newcastle and Flamengo for hot-headed moments of indiscpline. Also, in his first season at Stamford Bridge, he had one of the highest rates of ‘big chances’ missed in the Premier League (The Athletic).

Liverpool have only recently sold a striker in Darwin Nunez who was adored by much of the fan base but also prone to underperforming on his xG. Jackson strikes us as someone of a similar nature, but to a more extreme level.

We’d be shocked if he’s a Reds player by this time next week, but this transfer window has thrown up quite a few surprises already…