Harvey Barnes was on song for Leicester City last night in their 3-0 victory over Zorya Luhansk in their Europa League meeting. In the absence of Jamie Vardy, Kelechi Iheanacho stepped up to the plate, supported by midfielders Barnes and James Maddison.
His goal was his second the season, after opening up his account for the campaign in the Premier League against Burnley, where he also registered an assist (via Transfermarkt). The 22-year-old’s final figures for last term saw him notch seven goals and nine assists across all competitions, with more game time, he could be on-track to smashing those numbers.
Barnes, rated at £25.2m by Transfermarkt, could certainly be headed for a more prominent role in the Leicester squad, particularly after Brendan Rodgers lauded his performance against the Clarets last month.
“Harvey Barnes was outstanding tonight, he keeps on getting into areas you want him to and is a big talent,” the former Liverpool boss said (via Yahoo Sport).
Liverpool missed a trick by not signing Barnes
According to The Mirror, Jurgen Klopp and co were keeping tabs on the rising talent, who turned a lot of heads last season. After letting Adam Lallana leave, it seemed as though the Reds were after another midfielder to bolster the ranks. Certainly, something Liverpool have been lacking for a long time is a creative playmaker in the engine room, which is what many thought they had found in new signing Thiago.
However, the Spaniard is yet again ruled out after only just returning from a 19-day hiatus due to injury and Covid-19. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Naby Keita are also sidelined through injury, leaving very few options for Jurgen Klopp to choose from.
Barnes will have undoubtedly impressed the German after his performance on Thursday. According to FotMob, the midfield man made the most successful dribbles (4) and won the most duels (8) out of any other player on the pitch. Additionally, he hit the woodwork and took a total of five shots towards goal, only further highlighting his threat in attack.
For Liverpool, who rely heavily on wingers Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah to score goals, Barnes would have been an ideal summer coup and perhaps Klopp may choose to revisit his interest in January. Although, as he continues to rise into the limelight, Leicester will not let him go for cheap.
In other news, Virgil van Dijk injury has kicked Liverpool into gear as they move for major centre-back target…