Alisson's Closing Doors: Juventus Eye Vicario Permanently as Liverpool Talks Stall
Alisson Becker is into the final year of his Liverpool contract, and the doors that were supposed to be open for him next summer are quietly starting to close.
The Brazilian, freshly 34, is set to become a free agent in June 2027 after Liverpool triggered a one-year option extension — but according to Fabrizio Romano, there are currently "no active conversations" between the club and their long-standing number one about a new deal. Liverpool activated the extra season to avoid losing another leader after the summer exits of Mohamed Salah and Andy Robertson, Romano said, and any new contract would now have to be negotiated from scratch: there is no further option in the deal.
The obvious exit route was Juventus. Spalletti has openly admitted Alisson was Juve's priority target at the start of the summer, before the Italian side pivoted and took Guglielmo Vicario on loan from Tottenham with a view to making it permanent. Now, per TMW, Juventus are already considering triggering that permanent clause after Vicario's impressive start in Turin — and that would almost certainly take the Old Lady off Alisson's list. They do not need both, and if the plan is to buy the loanee, there is no space left for the Liverpool star.
The underlying numbers make the situation more painful for Juve. Across the same five league appearances this season, Alisson's goals-prevented figure sits at +0.85 with a 77.8% save percentage, compared with Vicario's -0.21 and 69.2%. On performance alone, Alisson is the upgrade. But Juve feel they could convince the Brazilian to move to Turin on a reduced wage — he earns a reported £13 million gross a year at Anfield — and Spalletti plus technical director Frederic Massara both know him well from his Roma days.
From January 1, Juventus are free to negotiate with the player directly — as free as Liverpool themselves. That date will be one of the defining storylines of this season: a world-class goalkeeper who could walk away for nothing. Tuttosport report Juve scouts were even in Amsterdam for the Netherlands' clash with Germany, running the rule over Virgil van Dijk as well. Liverpool's summer of high-profile exits may not be finished.
Liverpool, for their part, are already sketching the succession plan. TEAMtalk claim the Reds have been impressed by Hull City's 23-year-old Greek goalkeeper Konstantinos Tzolakis — 13 caps for Greece, a £20 million summer move to the MKM Stadium — as a potential "long-term" replacement, though no decision has been made. Tottenham, Real Madrid and PSG are watching him too. And in the meantime, Liverpool are also working the other end of the pitch: Brentford's Italy international right-back Michael Kayode is linked with Anfield, with Manchester City joining the race — business as usual at the Etihad despite the guilty verdict.
Cover photo: Bryan Berlin / WikiPortraits / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0). In-article photo: Bryan Berlin / WikiPortraits / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0).
#Transfers #Liverpool #Alisson