Liverpool need a new midfielder. Badly. The perfect signing is a former Barcelona graduate who could fix everything.
Liverpool drew 2-2 with Newcastle United on Sunday in what was a very, very poor performance. In fact, it was the same performance we saw across last season - struggling for any control before a late goal changed the way the points were going.
This time, Liverpool got that goal thanks to a late Dominik Szoboszlai penalty. But it merely papers over the cracks.
The Reds were far, far too open and Newcastle twice took advantage of a weak midfield to get a free run at Liverpool's defence. Both goals came that way for the home side.
And this was the case last season, too. Liverpool's defensive numbers in midfield were horrendous last season - they've essentially built a midfield out of attacking midfielders, with none of them able to stop attacks.
So here's a stat: Every Premier League team had at least two midfielders who were above average for defensive actions last season, expect two. Liverpool and Sunderland. Sunderland had one (Enzo Le Fee) and the Reds had zero (0).
They've since sold the guy who had their second most (Curtis Jones, though admittedly many of his came at right-back).
This isn't a niche problem, then. Liverpool severely lack midfield steel and it's absolutely imperative that they go out and find it.
including Samir El Mourabet at Strasbourg (he's still available BTW) and Ayyoub Bouaddi (off to Manchester City).
But here's another one: Ilaix Moriba.
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There are enormous question marks over Moriba, let's start with that. They're not on the pitch but off it, as he's only 23 but has already spurned opportunities at Barcelona, RB Leipzig, Valencia and Getafe.
He's ended up at Celta Vigo and, per Nos Diario , has a €30m release clause in his contract there. Peanuts for a Premier League side. And Celta did actually believe a Premier League side would come for him - only, none did.
Well, maybe Liverpool should because Moriba has got himself on track and is actually thriving at Celta.
The midfielder was solid there in 2024/25, standing out in our model as their second-best defensive player in an otherwise quite-poor defensive team. In 2025/26, though, Celta became a strong defensive team - mainly because of Moriba.
He was by far their standout defensive player and by our metrics, the 6th-best defensive player (note, not just midfielder) in La Liga last season. In fact, he's a standout to the point of being the 15th best defensive midfielder in Europe's top five leagues and the outright best 22-and-under.
Moriba, who has since turned 23, is a near-top-10 percent midfielder for defensive actions and pass accuracy across Europe's top five leagues. Essentially, that's the type of player Liverpool need. Not to mention that he's also below average for being dispossessed (in the good way) and for being dribbled past.
But here's the key: Moriba is top 10 per cent for defensive output share. As in, he takes on a bigger share of the defensive workload compared to the vast majority of midfielders.
That is, again, a positive sign. Celta have anchored their defence on him and improved it in doing so, and he's already proven that he can be the main defensive force in midfield to a positive effect.
That's exactly what Liverpool are chasing this summer. They need someone who can be the lone force in there, while keeping things tidy and limiting their mistakes. For €30m, they will not find better at such late notice.
