TRANSFER BOOST: LIVERPOOL MOVE FOR NICO SCHLOTTERBECK AS DORTMUND SCOUT MARCOS SENESI REPLACEMENT
Liverpool's pursuit of Nico Schlotterbeck gains momentum as Dortmund scouts Marco Senesi. Read the latest on the summer transfer plan.
Liverpool just got a real shot in the arm as they chase Borussia Dortmund defender Nico Schlotterbeck ahead of the summer window.
Yeah, the January transfer window barely slammed shut, but Liverpool’s already working behind the scenes, getting plans for the summer. Schlotterbeck's name keeps popping up. He’s about to hit the final year of his Dortmund contract, and that always stirs things up. People tend to listen when an important player could walk for free soon.
Now, with his future up in the air, Dortmund looks like they’re getting ready to move on. According to Bild, Dortmund scouts are already sizing up replacements. They’ve got their eye on Marco Senesi from Bournemouth, apparently.
Senesi's contract at Bournemouth runs out at the end of this season, so he’s about to become a free agent. He can even start talking to clubs outside England right now if he wants. That puts Dortmund in a good spot if they want to snap him up without a transfer fee.
So, if Dortmund really likes Senesi and they’re planning for life without Schlotterbeck, Liverpool’s path to making a move just got a lot clearer.
New boss Arne Slot and his team at Anfield definitely want to beef up their defence this summer. They already missed out on Marc Guehi from Crystal Palace; he almost joined Liverpool last year, but the deal fell apart at the last second. Instead, Guehi ended up heading to Manchester City during the January window.
That means Liverpool needs to look elsewhere for defensive reinforcements, and Schlotterbeck fits the bill.
Dortmund, for their part, still hopes Schlotterbeck signs a new deal. He hasn’t made up his mind yet, though. Last month, he told Sky Sports Germany he’s set a personal deadline—he wouldn’t say exactly when, just that it’ll be before the summer. Here’s what he said:
“I’ve set a personal deadline for myself. I won’t say when it is. Definitely before the summer, though. I feel comfortable here. It won’t be an easy decision. I’m a gut-feeling kind of guy. I’ll sit down with Dad and Keven (my brother), and then I’ll make a decision. I don’t quite know right now how it’ll turn out.”
So, for now, Liverpool waits, waits, but the signs are moving their way.
FINANCIAL EXPERTS PREDICT £120M HIT IF LIVERPOOL MISS 2026-27 CHAMPIONS LEAGUE SPOT
Liverpool face a £120m disaster: Read about the Champions League race, Arne Slot’s anger, and the impact of the £400m summer spend.
Liverpool’s in a tight spot right now. After losing to Wolves at Molineux, they’re clinging to fifth place, usually good enough for a Champions League spot, but the cushion isn’t exactly comfortable. They’re just three points ahead of Chelsea, who still have a game in hand against Aston Villa. That race is heating up fast.
Virgil van Dijk summed it up pretty well: “Either we get it, and we deserve it, or we don’t get it, and we don’t deserve it. If you play for Liverpool, it’s always been like this. It’s down to us, together with our fans, to get the results we need to get into the Champions League.” He also mentioned that Arne Slot, the head coach, wasn’t exactly thrilled after the loss; “angry” was the word he used.
But it’s not just about pride or missing out on big European nights. There’s a lot of money on the line. Football finance expert Kieran Maguire pointed out that missing out on the Champions League could leave a big dent in Liverpool’s bank account, even if the club runs pretty sensibly these days.
UEFA’s numbers tell the story. Liverpool earned €98.1 million (£85.3 million/$114 million) just for reaching the last 16 of the 2024–25 Champions League. Compare that to the Europa League, where they only received €26.8 million (£23.3 million/$31.1 million) for reaching the quarterfinals last season. The gap is massive.
Even winning the lesser European trophies doesn’t come close. Tottenham got €41.4 million (£36 million/$48.1 million) for winning the Europa League, and Chelsea picked up €21.8 million (£20 million/$26.7 million) for the Conference League. It’s nowhere near what Champions League teams bring home.
Maguire also pointed out the other hits: fewer home match days, less broadcast cash, and sponsors that pay out less when the club misses the top tier. He reckons missing out could cost Liverpool around £120 million ($160 million). Still, he doesn’t think it’ll sink the club.
And it’s not like Liverpool have been shy about spending. Last summer alone, they shelled out more than £400 million ($534.5 million) on big names like Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak – the biggest single-window spend in football history, actually.
Even with all that, Liverpool just reported record revenues of £703 million ($939 million) for the year ending May 2025, turning a modest £8 million ($10.7 million) profit. And here’s the kicker: despite that wild summer, Liverpool ranks only eighth in net transfer spend over the past five years. They’ve been splashing the cash, sure, but they’ve kept things balanced in the long run.
WHAT’S MISSING? WHY 16 GOALS AND 6 ASSISTS AREN'T ENOUGH FOR HUGO EKITIKE
Liverpool's top scorer Hugo Ekitike reflects on a massive win at Anfield and explains why he’s still hungry for more goals.
Hugo Ekitike isn’t exactly thrilled with his goal tally for Liverpool this season, even though he’s still leading the pack as the club’s top scorer.
He got his 16th goal of the season on Saturday, kicking things off in Liverpool’s 5-2 win over West Ham at Anfield. Not bad for his debut year. Plus, the 23-year-old, who came over from Eintracht Frankfurt last summer for up to £79 million, set up two more goals for Alexis Mac Allister and Cody Gakpo. That puts him at 22 goal involvements so far.
Still, Ekitike thinks he’s got a lot more to give. He missed solid chances against Nottingham Forest, Sunderland, and Manchester City recently, and that’s still bugging him.
“To be honest, I could score more,” he said. “I’m not that happy! But it’s not just about goals; it’s assists too. On Saturday, I set up one or two. As long as I’m helping the team and being involved, that’s what really matters. I want to win, so in that way, I’m happy.
“Obviously, I can improve. I could’ve scored in those last games; I had some good chances. So I’ll keep working. I want to be the best I can for the team, because I know I can do more.
“It’s all about learning and getting better. I’ll try to step it up in the next games, score more, and get involved even more.”
His goal against West Ham came after Liverpool kept the pressure on from a corner. Four of their goals that day came straight from, or just after, set pieces.
“We had some problems at the start of the season,” Ekitike said about Liverpool’s set-piece struggles. “We’ve all talked about it and worked on it together in training. It’s great to see it paying off now. We deserved it; honestly, we’ve put a lot of work into this.”
Saturday was the first of seven huge games in just over three weeks. Liverpool were up 3-0 at halftime, but West Ham didn’t just roll over; they made Liverpool work for it in the second half, fighting to stay out of the relegation zone.
Talking to liverpoolfc.com, Ekitike said, “Scoring early in games like that helps, for the team and for the fans. You feel more confident. And going in at halftime 3-0 up, that’s always good.
“But they showed it’s not over till it’s over, they fought back, and we let a couple in. When that happens, you have to score more, and we did. We got five.
“We’ve got to keep going, because there’s a long way left in the season. But yeah, I’m really happy. That win mattered.”
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