Liverpool have signed Thiago Alcantara from Bayern Munich into a deal that could succeed at 25 million pounds.
Liverpool will pay £20 million for the Spanish international, with $5 million more, and the midfielder will wear the number 6 shirt.
Thiago arrived in the UK on Friday morning, flying to Manchester from Munich to complete an exam and close the deal.
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The 29-year-old helped Bayern win the hat-trick last season, beating Paris Saint-Germain in last month’s Champions League final in Lisbon.
“I think it is a feeling. I have been waiting for this moment for a long time and I am very, very satisfied to be here,” Thiago told Liverpool’s official website.
“When the years go by, you try to win as much as you can, and when you win you need to earn more. I think this club also describes who I am; I need all the passes, to win as many trophies as possible.
“He [has] also that kind of circle of family members [feeling] that I want because [we love] having a very close date with the club and I think I’m going to feel that, I’m going to have that feeling, this club too.
“I have to adapt as temporarily as possible to the team on the stage and context in which we have lived lately.
“Everything is more compact and we arrived a little later, however it is still football and I think we have to combine all the wonderful things, all the smart things we have. I will help the team defensively and offensively. ] And also intellectually look.
“[Fans] aren’t more excited than I am, of course not!It’s not about saying words, it’s about doing things. I’ll give my center on the field to my teammates, to the club and also to the trust. “
When he left the Bundesliga club, Thiago turned to social media to post a farewell video that read: “I made the highest misleading resolution of my career.
“I will close this bankruptcy at this glorious football club where I grew up as a player for seven years.
“Triumphs, joys and also difficult moments but what I am most proud of is that I came to Munich as a young man full of dreams and now I will be fulfilled with the club, a history and a culture.
“Here I have learned to love a culture from which I now bid farewell and which I will never forget.
“My resolution is purely sporty as a footballer, I need demanding new situations to expand further. Bavaria will be my home, thank you FC Bayern. “
Bayern manager Hansi Flick paid tribute to Thiago on Thursday and said: “Thiago is a remarkable player who has spent seven incredibly successful years here.
“He is a wonderful user and an exceptional professional. It was very touching today when it said goodbye. “
Thiago made his career at Barcelona and made his debut for the Catalan team through Pep Guardiola in 2009 at the age of 18.
It was an unused replacement when Barca beat Manchester United in the Champions League final the following season.
Thiago joined Guardiola in 2013 when Bayern coach took him to Bavaria, where he won seven Bundesliga titles and four DFB-Pokal cups.
Sky Sports News reporter Kaveh Solhekol The Transfer Show:
“Thiago’s signing at Liverpool shows how Liverpool are lately in world football because he is the most productive player in the world in what he does. He’s been at Bayern Munich for seven seasons, he’s earned a name each and every one. “season, he just won the Champions League and one of the festival’s most productive players last season.
Bayern knew their contract was running out next summer. They put him on a new contract, a four-year contract and believe everything was agreed, he went on to point the dotted line but at the last minute he replaced his brain and To leave this summer, Bayern let it go and he needs a new challenge that is in Liverpool.
“From Liverpool’s point of view, Bayern were first asking for 30 million euros and there was no way Liverpool would pay for it. The way they structured this deal is that they paid 20 million pounds for four seasons, so five million pounds. “a year Thiago When you look at it like that, it’s the most productive lease I’ve ever noticed to get such a smart player for only five million pounds a year.
“That’s why many Liverpool social media enthusiasts say their director Michael Edwards is a genius. “
Vinny O’Connor, Sky Sports News reporter:
“Liverpool’s position in the summer was not to point out Thiago Alcántara, who replaced a few weeks ago, when the suggestion was that they would only see to point it out if someone was leaving, but they didn’t think it was going to happen.
“Now Liverpool have to get ahead of themselves despite this and they think Thiapass is the guy for them.
“Jurgen Klopp had also been consistent over the summer: Liverpool would not do business unless a very smart opportunity presented and a deal was made.
“This is a deal Liverpool can simply reject.
“At 29, Thiago does not necessarily have compatibility with the FSG style [Fenway Sports Group, Liverpool owners] of buying young players, educating them and expanding their talents and courage, but Thiago’s impeccable quality, combined with his delight of betting at the greatest stages, meant that this specific move was a no-brainer.
“He is a player here and now, not yet tested in the Premier League and who is used to betting on the highest level in Barcelona, Bayern and Spain.
“Signing also helps solve a challenge liverpool recently declared – Trent Alexander Arnold alluded to in an interview a few weeks ago – the game plan wants to change.
It is in Liverpool’s brain to replace the dynamics in midfield. It is not a question of waste, but now they are ready to give the rival something else to think about. Liverpool have been playing the same way for some years and Thiago is bringing something absolutely different to them.
“The signing of the Bayern Munich midfielder renews this festival by beatings and tells the rest of the players in this position that they want to get back to their game.
“Now they have to move from a position of strength to cool things down and give the other groups something new to think about. “
Adam Bate of Sky Sports:
The commentator just said how comfortable Paris Saint-Germain was when it happened: “They are very pleased that Bayern have the ball on their own field,” he said. But it is at this very moment that Thiago Alcántara woven his magic, drawing a Pass Between Lines.
The ball at the bottom of the net a few seconds later, with enough purpose to win the 2020 Champions League for Bayern Munich and while goalscorer Kingsley Coguy was the match official, Thiago’s role in the team’s win did not escape anyone.
At the age of 29 and unwilling to sign a new contract, Bayern learned that they might have to sell. Liverpool have increased and it’s easy to see why. Jurgen Klopp’s team can do almost anything. But they can’t do what Thiago can do. . .
Read the full report on what Thiago would offer Liverpool here
Adam Smith of Sky Sports:
Your resume tells the story. At the age of 29, Thiago amassed 11 league titles with Barcelona and Bayern Munich. Since his league debut, he has missed the national crown once, in 2011/12.
If that wasn’t enough, what interested Jurgen Klopp?The relief in the fees of his contract in decline undoubtedly attractive, but so are his strengths, in particular his ability to exert pressure on his opponents.
Only Maximilian Arnold of Wolfsburg regained ownership of the third central more than Thiago in the Bundesliga last season, and played 1055 minutes longer than the Spanish international.
Thiago also takes Liverpool’s existing midfield stand a step forward: the ability to run with the ball. Its final haggle frequency is exceptional, as it patrols the central spaces of the terrain.
In addition, the 29-year-old maintains possession, despite his progressive will and above-average pass count, with a passing accuracy of 90. 5%, which ranks 21st in the league.
Thiago has an unrivalled pedigree, with 12 years of delight in hard clubs and nine years with Spain, while being part of the mold of a midfielder under Klopp.
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