The January transfer window is nearly upon us, and according to the latest rumours, Liverpool are ready to add a number of targets to boost their chances of ending the 2014-15 Premier League season in the European slots.

The first half of the current campaign hasn’t gone all that well for the Reds, who added several young players during the summer and predictably failed to build on the momentum of last season.

The future of the club still looks bright, however, and one or two key signings in January could push the squad back among Britain’s elite. Here are the latest rumours coming out of Anfield.

 

Conflicting Reports on Xherdan Shaqiri

Most of the rumours concerning Swiss star Xherdan Shaqiri appear to be coming from Italy, but not all of the reports are pointed in the same direction. Sky Italy (h/t Metro‘s Will Giles) believe the Reds have made an offer for a permanent transfer to Bayern Munich, pushing the team into pole position for his services:

Although Brendan Rodgers has claimed that the upcoming transfer window will be a quiet one for Liverpool, according to Sky Italy the Reds have made a concrete offer for the Swiss international.

Shaqiri, who joined Bayern for £8m from FC Basel back in 2012, has struggled to establish himself under Pep Guardiola and has been strongly linked with a move to Anfield since the summer, as well as Inter and Juventus.

According to respected Italian journalist Alfredo Pedulla (h/t Adam Digby), however, the forward’s agent has meetings planned with Juventus and Inter Milan—but not with Liverpool:

The two Italian sides are believed to have offered the Bavarians loan deals with options to buy the player outright, with Bayern preferring to sell the youngster immediately.

The 23-year-old looks almost certain to leave the German champions, as he has been unable to lock up a regular starting position under manager Pep Guardiola. Bleacher Report’s Sam Tighe likes his potential and believes he could present interested teams with a massive bargain in January:

Judging by the latest reports, there are a number of possibilities. Given Shaqiri‘s agent is meeting with Juventus and Inter, rumours Liverpool have made a bid to Bayern may be false, or the bid could have arrived after both meetings had already been scheduled.

It’s also possible Shaqiri favours a move to Italy and isn’t interested in joining Liverpool, given their recent struggles in the Premier League. It would be hard to believe the Switzerland international wouldn’t even listen to the Reds, but former Swiss star Kubilay Turkyilmaz told the Daily Express‘ Jamie Anderson he can see why: “England would suit Shaq more. They are less obsessed with tactics there, but a move to Liverpool right now could not be more unsuitable. They are in a crisis and cannot really have any ambitions this year. Joining them from Bayern, who expect to win titles every season, would be a culture shock.”

That said, Shaqiri will still likely take at least a couple of days to ponder his options. If Juventus and Inter are unwilling to offer Bayern a permanent deal, the player runs the risk of having to return to Germany in six months if he fails to convince in Serie A.

As of right now, there appears to be no clear favourite among these three teams for Shaqiri‘s services.

 

Neto and Fiorentina to Hold Crunch Talks

Fiorentina goalkeeper Neto will be a free agent at the end of this season, and according to GianlucaDiMarzio.com’s David Amoyal, his future will be decided in the coming days: “Fiorentina is focused on the future, and the Tuscan’s club top priority is resolving the Neto situation. The Brazilian goalkeeper’s contract expires next June. Tomorrow Fiorentina will meet with his agent to understand if there are the conditions for a renewal, it will be a decisive conversation.”

La Viola want to keep the 25-year-old around for the foreseeable future, but amid interest from Juventus, Liverpool and AS Roma, the stopper’s agent is not so sure whether that would be the best move for his career, as he told Italian outlet Il Corriere dello Sport (via ESPN FC’s Ben Gladwell):

Neto is preparing to take a very important decision for his future and he needs to reflect a bit more, but certainly he’s not running away. He’s 25 years old and in a situation where he has to decide on his personal future and where his career will go, and he needs to make a considered choice. He’s going to return to his home country for the holidays in order to be able to reflect carefully on his future.

While most pundits believe he’ll eventually re-sign with Fiorentina, Liverpool hold a distinct advantage if he doesn’t. Due to UEFA regulations, Neto cannot sign a pre-contract with a Serie A team, meaning Liverpool are free to negotiate in January, unlike Juventus or Roma.

Neto would add some much-needed competition for current starter Simon Mignolet, who was benched in December after a series of unconvincing performances for the Reds.

The current Fiorentina stopper may not be a well-known player among Serie A fans, but he’s quietly had a great career with La Viola—although he did make international headlines for this horrible blunder:

He’s a solid stopper with age on his side, but he’ll likely never be mistaken for one of the Premier League’s top goalkeepers. Still, as a potential free agent, the Reds could do far worse in terms of value.

Liverpool will follow up how contract negotiations go between the Brazilian and Fiorentina, while making their pitch for a pre-contract and a summer move. A January transfer is unlikely.

 

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