Liverpool have reportedly joined the race to sign Schalke 04’s €40m (£37m)-rated defender Ozan Kabak this summer.
The Premier League champions are expected to be in the market for a centre back with Dejan Lovren on the verge of joining Zenit St Petersburg.
Should Lovren complete his move to Russia, Jurgen Klopp would only have three senior central defenders at his disposal in Virgil Van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip.
Although Kabak has been linked with a move to Anfield by a variety of outlets, the Liverpool Echo has claimed Reds are in fact not interested in the young defender.
Kabak has been linked with Juventus, Tottenham and Borussia Dortmund, amongst others, in the past but what would he offer Liverpool if he were to move to Anfield this summer?
Career so far
Despite only turning 20 in March, Kabak has already squeezed plenty into his career to date, turning out for three major clubs already.
The Turkey international began his career with his country’s most successful club side Galatasaray, making 17 appearances for them before joining VFB Stuttgart in January 2019.
Kabak was a regular for Stuttgart upon his arrival making 15 Bundesliga appearances in the second half of the 2018-19 season and scoring three goals but he was unable to prevent them from dropping into 2. Bundesliga.
Schalke wasted little time in raiding Stuttgart for the defender, activating his €15m relegation release clause at the end of June. Kabak turned down an approach from Bayern Munich for his services believing that his development would be better served at Schalke where he would play consistently.
Kabak featured prominently during his debut campaign at the Veltins-Arena, making 26 Bundesliga appearances in total and scoring three times as Schalke finished 12th.
What’s his style of play?
“I would say my heading ability is good, because I scored a lot with my head before, at Galatasaray,” Kabak told the Bundesliga website last year. “I have good physicality, like pace and jumping. I hope I can show these qualities to the fans in the next match.”
As a goalscoring return of six goals in 63 games indicates, Kabak is a major aerial asset which would be advantageous to Liverpool in both boxes. In the Bundesliga this season, Kabak won 76/113 (67 per cent) of his contested aerial duels, more than any other player in Schalke’s squad.
Kabak also ranked top in Schalke’s squad for clearances completed (94) and shots blocked (19) which emphasises his defensive qualities and those traits, allied to his natural physicality, should theoretically make him tailor-made for Premier League football.
Of course, in a team like Liverpool’s, a defender’s role isn’t purely to defend. All of Liverpool’s central defenders, in particular, Van Dijk, are excellent passers and have to be in a team that enjoys on average 60 per cent possession per Premier League game.
It is that aspect of the game that Kabak would need to improve if he were to move to Anfield. His pass accuracy rate of 81 per cent compares unfavourably to Van Dijk (89 per cent), Gomez (88 per cent), Matip (84 per cent) and Lovren (83 per cent) from this season.
What’s been said about him?
“It’s incredible how worldy-wise he is for his age,” said VFB Stuttgart’s sporting director and former Premier League midfielder Thomas Hitzlsperger. “It’s astonishing. I see him every day and am amazed at how he mature he is. He wants to know everything; he wants to learn German right away and understand everything. That’s the kind of attitude we need. He’s already a role model, despite his age.”
Schalke head coach David Wagner said of Kabak this season: “He’s certainly one of the most talented defenders of his age in Europe. Everyone knows which teams made every effort to try and sign him.”
On Virgil Van Dijk…
Considering his status as one of, if not the best central defenders of his generation, it shouldn’t come as too much of a shock that Van Dijk has a fan in Kabak.
“My personal aim is to become a top defender in maybe two or three years, like Virgil van Dijk. He’s my idol, I really like him,” Kabak said. “I like his style and how he plays, so I can say he’s my football idol.”
Judging by those sentiments, Kabak would surely jump at the chance to work alongside his “idol” at Anfield next season if such an opportunity arises.
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