Gini meanie REDS CAN COPE
LIVERPOOL midfielder Fabinho insisted Jurgen Klopp does not need to dip into the transfer market to replace Georginio Wijnaldum this summer.
The Reds have yet to bolster their midfield options following the reliable Dutchman’s departure to Paris Saint-Germain, with early interest in Borussia Monchengladbach’s Florian Neuhaus still to firm up.
But Fabinho is confident that Klopp already has the tools at his disposal to cope with the loss. Asked about the toll of losing Wijnaldum, he said: “Gini was a really good friend of mine. Personally, I will miss him a lot. “The team will miss him because he played in all the games, was never injured and was a really good player. “Gini was a really special player for this club. He helped me a lot since I arrived at the club. Now he is at another team and I wish him all the best.” But the Brazilian, 27, claimed he and his team-mates are more than capable of picking up the slack on the pitch, adding: “Our squad has already shown we have good players to replace him.
“I think the midfield is the part of the team where we have more players. “We have Jordan Henderson, me, Thiago, Curtis Jones, James Milner, Naby Keita – a lot of players who can play in this position.
“We will miss Gini but we have the quality in this group to replace him.” Big-spending Manchester City have been installed as the bookmakers’ favourites for both the Premier League and Champions League this season. And Chelsea’s status as holders of the latter trophy has seen them talked up as a new potential challenger for domestic glory.
But Fabinho is not interested in how Liverpool’s rivals are shaping up, not least because they have plenty of trophy-winning pedigree of their own.
“This Liverpool squad has already won the Premier League, the Champions League, some important trophies,” he said. “We don’t pay attention to other teams. “We will be strong and so will they. “Hopefully we will be a bit stronger.”