- Andrew Robertson has made a slow start to the Premier League campaign
- The 30-year-old’s place in the starting XI has come under threat in recent weeks
- LISTEN NOW: It’s All Kicking Off! , available wherever you get your podcasts. New episodes every Monday and Thursday
Liverpool are eyeing a number of potential targets to succeed left-back Andy Robertson.
The 30-year-old has a fight on his hands to reclaim his starting berth in the Reds’ defence following a tough start to the season.
Arne Slot opted to play back-up Kostas Tsimikas in the Reds’ 2-1 Premier League win over Brighton, following Robertson’s Robertson’s poor showing in the previous league clash against Arsenal.
The club are looking to plan for the future and have eyed a number of targets to succeed the Scotland captain. Among them include Fulham full back Antonee Robinson and Wolves defender Rayan Ait-Nouri.
In addition to the pair, the Anfield club have drawn up a shortlist which includes RB Leipzig’s David Raum and Ipswich Town’s Leif Davis, according to The Sun.
Andy Robertson future at Liverpool is unclear after a poor start to the season under new boss Arne Slot
Rayan Ait-Nouri scored one of his three Premier League goals this season against Arne Slot’s men
The Reds have reportedly have looked at Ipswich defender Leif Davis (left) and Fulham’s Antonee Robinson
The outlet claim that Raum, Davies and Robinson have all have been watched by Liverpool scouts this season.
Acquiring any of that trio this summer is likely to come at a heavy price, as all are tied down in contracts to their current employers until at least 2027. Robinson, in fact, who has impressed for the Cottagers this term, has a deal running until 2028.
While Davis is contracted to the Tractor Boys until 2028, though they have an option to extend his deal by a further 12 months.
Ait-Nouri on the other hand has a deal that runs until 2026 and the 23-year-old has been linked with a move to Anfield in recent seasons after catching the eye at Molineux. This term he has three goals and two assists in five appearances for Gary O’Neil’s side.
Robertson’s poor form could be due to his suboptimal preparation for the 2024-25 campaign, as he was forced to miss the majority of pre-season nursing an ankle injury sustained in March that he had played through in order to represent his country at Euro 2024.
‘I think his current situation is what you can expect if a player misses out on pre-season and a new manager comes in – you miss quite a lot.’ Slot told reporters ahead of the win over the Seagulls on Saturday.
‘You have to go into a programme where you’ve missed the base tactically, when it comes to us [a new management team], and physically as well.’
Despite the reports, the Dutchman, who has won 13 of his first 15 matches as Liverpool manager – a club record – still expects Robertson to rediscover his form.
RB Leipzig’s David Raum, who is currently out with an ankle injury, has reportedly been watched by Liverpool scouts this season
Arne Slot remains confident Robertson can rediscover his form after the defender was forced to miss the majority of pre-season through injury
He added: ‘For me, he is a bit in that period of time where he is thinking: “OK, I’m here now, should I be here or there?” The moment he stops thinking but is just acting on what we expect he will be fine. That, combined with the fact that Robbo has always been a great player for this club especially because he went up and down, up and down all the time.
‘Therefore he needs to have some time because he missed out on pre-season to come back to that up-and-down, up-and-down full-back. I see him getting there more and more; that’s the good thing. ‘
The Reds welcome Bayer Leverkusen, managed by Liverpool legend Xabi Alonso, to Anfield on Tuesday night, looking to maintain their 100 per cent record in the Champions League.
