Nico Schlotterbeck must be Liverpool’s top transfer target after what he did for Germany last night

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·14 de outubro de 2025

Nico Schlotterbeck must be Liverpool’s top transfer target after what he did for Germany last night

Nico Schlotterbeck received praise aplenty for his latest display in Germany’s win over Northern Ireland on Monday.

His reception certainly starkly contrasted with that of Liverpool playmaker Florian Wirtz, as Julian Nagelsmann’s men secured a clean sheet in their World Cup qualifier.

Vídeos OneFootball

DFB-Team sit at the top Group A on nine points taken from their four qualifiers (ahead of Slovakia on goal difference).

Nico Schlotterbeck sounds like a Virgil van Dijk successor

(Photo by Christian Kaspar-Bartke/Getty Images)

It’s judging Schlotterbeck on one aspect of his game – but he does sound awfully similar to Virgil van Dijk.

German media, indeed, were quite keen to highlight the Borussia Dortmund centre-back’s marvellous passing range and ‘precise’ diagonals.

BILD: “Defensively, he was always on the ball. His shot from around 23 meters whizzed two meters over the crossbar. He had to be briefly treated when Reid found him with a bare foot (28′). He was strong in the build-up play with precise diagonal balls.”
SZ: “His left foot was missed during his injury absence, not only at Dortmund but also by the national team. Schlotterbeck can play the ball precisely from defence to attack, as he did against Northern Ireland. Perhaps for this reason, he was tackled even more vigorously by the Northern Irish than the others, provoking the first yellow card of the game when Jamie Reid put his studs on his shin. He took on every wrestling challenge in the Greco-Northern Irish style.”
Sport.de: “Played many long balls to Adeyemi and repeatedly managed to expose gaps in the opposition’s defence with diagonal balls. He performed well in defence for long stretches. After the break, he occasionally seemed a bit light-handed during Northern Ireland’s pressing phase.”

I've convinced myself that Nico Schlotterbeck is the guy for Liverpool. Even prepared to overlook the Bundesliga tax.
– segunda-feira, 13 de outubro de 2025

Regardless of his most appealing trait, we know for a fact that the 25-year-old is on Liverpool’s radar.

The Merseysiders didn’t end up pushing for Schlotterbeck in the summer just gone – instead preferring to prioritise Marc Guehi.

Priorities at that time, of course, were different, with Ibrahima Konate entering a year left on his contract.

@farrellkeeling96 🚨 PART 1: What is going on with Florian Wirtz at Liverpool and Germany? #lfc #fyp #florianwirtz #wirtz #liverpool ♬ original sound – Farrell Keeling

The time is coming for Liverpool to sign Schlotterbeck

(Photo by Christof Koepsel/Getty Images)

Just how long Liverpool can afford to put off signing the elite German international, however, remains to be seen.

Virgil van Dijk, of course, remains ever-imperious in the backline for Arne Slot’s men. We’re unlikely to see a spiral in performance levels much before he turns 36 (if even then!).

That said, we do expect the recruitment team will be planning for the statistical likelihood of a decline in the coming years.

Indeed, if reports were to be believed, Nico Schlotterbeck was under serious consideration at Anfield in the event his Dutch counterpart didn’t sign a contract extension.

* Nico Schlotterbeck, Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate’s per 90 stats over the last 365 days (FBref)

And why not? The Bundesliga centre-back is exceptional on the ball, ranking in the 99th and 90th percentiles respectively for progressive passes and progressive carries (FBref).

He’s not quite yet up to the standard of Virgil van Dijk or Ibrahima Konate’s aerial dominance, but perhaps that could be compensated for with his defensive partner.

You can watch Slot’s post-Chelsea press conference via Empire of the Kop on YouTube:

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