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Jamie Carragher is backing Liverpool to spend “up to £200million” to rejuvenate their midfield at the end of the season and believes Jude Bellingham is the “perfect fit”.
The 19-year-old England international has excelled with Borussia Dortmund since joining the Bundesliga side in 2019 from Birmingham City and has been touted for a lucrative return to the Premier League.
Liverpool have long been seen as contenders for his services, though recent reports indicate Manchester City are leading the chase. Real Madrid are also said to hold a firm interest.
Landing Bellingham will take a substantial fee, likely one that would exceed Liverpool’s club-record of £75m spent on Virgil van Dijk in 2018, but Carragher believes that figure will be a “bargain” after he continues to develop.
“The issue is that the players don’t have the energy to play a full game at the intensity they’ve played at in previous seasons. Teams are now matching their energy, but this isn’t something that Liverpool has adapted,” he said on Sky Sports’ The Overlap.
“The Arsenal game was a fine example of this – when they played Liverpool off the pitch in the second half – and that is why I can see Liverpool spending up to £200m on their midfield in the summer.
“Jude Bellingham would be the perfect fit, but he would be a lot of money.
“When Liverpool have spent big money in the past, it’s been on the goalkeeper [Alisson Becker] and Virgil van Dijk, who were bought in at great age profiles.
“Signing Jude Bellingham would be for a lot of money, but it would get to two years down the line and people would see it as a bargain.
“At his age, you’d have him for at least five seasons before he’d move on, which is a great investment for the club.”
Liverpool sit eighth in the Premier League, 15 points adrift of leaders Arsenal and seven short of Tottenham in fourth.
