Liverpool have taken a significant step in their goalkeeping succession plan by securing Giorgi Mamardashvili from Valencia for £29million, although he will officially join the club next summer.
With Mamardashvili’s arrival on the horizon, the No. 1 position is already on the minds of current goalkeepers.
Caoimhin Kelleher has acknowledged the situation and expressed a desire to explore his options next year. Meanwhile, Alisson has welcomed the signing, calling it a “good idea.”
Despite persistent rumours linking Alisson with a move to Saudi Arabia, he recently reaffirmed his commitment to Liverpool, stating, “I want to honour my contract and either complete it here or negotiate a new one.”
Currently contracted until 2026, with an option for an additional year, Alisson has been advised to prepare for increased competition with Mamardashvili’s impending arrival.
“I was attracted by Liverpool’s project when the club’s representatives met me to sign me,” Giorgi Mamardashvili told Georgian television’s First Channel, via El Desmarque.
“I will fight for the starting goalkeeper position, even if the current goalkeeper does not leave the team.”
It’s fair to say that displacing Alisson will not be an easy task.
As a world-class goalkeeper, he often doesn’t receive the recognition he truly deserves.
However, considering his injury history, there may be a significant opportunity for the Georgian goalkeeper, Mamardashvili, to make an impact.
Alisson has missed games due to injury or illness in five of the last six seasons.
Mamardashvili, who is currently studying English and following the Premier League closely, has amassed over 200 appearances at both club and international levels, all at just 24 years old.
With his incredibly high potential and evident ambition, it’s clear that he is not the type of player who would be content to sit idle on the bench.
Arne Slot echoed this sentiment when Kelleher expressed his ambitions earlier in the season, saying: “I’d be really worried if a player comes out saying, ‘I don’t care about playing first-team football, I like it so much on the bench and I want to stay there for the rest of my life’.
“As long as they accept their situation, not accepting it in a way that ‘I don’t care I’m not playing’, but accepting it by helping the team whenever they have to, then it is a good place to be in.”
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