Japan forward Takefusa Kubo has been tipped to become a forward option for Liverpool and has had pleasant words to say about the club in the past.
Whether we want to think about it or not, the Reds will have to one day plan for life without Mohamed Salah and a host of right-wingers have been touted as potential future options.
One name that has piqued the interest of some supporters is Kubo, who operates in the same area of the pitch as Salah and has been complimentary about Liverpool previously.
The 22-year-old joined Real Sociedad from Real Madrid last summer and notched nine goals and seven assists for his new club during the 2022/23 season.
Having made a quick start to his 2023/24 campaign with three goals in his opening five appearances, Kubo is emerging as a good potential fit should a vacancy on the right of the Reds’ forward line open up.
He once described Liverpool as “awesome” and his admiration for the club could make negotiations easier should any future approach be made.
“The team I think play the most interesting football is Liverpool,” he told Goal Japan back in 2019.
“I feel they are awesome when I watch their games. It’s not really to say they are my ‘favourite’, but more like ‘awesome’.
“I like fast and skilful players. All the big teams have these types of players, and when I watch them I feel they are awesome. I am not very fast, so I really like players who possess overwhelming speed. Those players make me feel ‘Wow, awesome!’.”
The impressive start to Kubo’s career has seen him dubbed the ‘Japanese Messi’ in his home country.
Liverpool fended off Saudi Arabian interest in Salah over the summer but there are fears among supporters that Al-Ittihad will return for the Egyptian in future windows.
At 31, the Reds will soon have to consider replacements for their talisman regardless of his imminent plans and Kubo is likely to tick a number of the boxes Liverpool will be looking for.
Ben Doak signed a new deal at Anfield earlier this week and will have one eye on taking a chunk of Salah’s minutes having featured predominantly on the right in his senior appearances so far.
It is a prospect no Red wants to ponder, but like-for-like Salah replacements are in short supply and the recruitment team will have a job on their hands when the time comes to fill that void.
