Incumbent Liverpool ‘keeper Simon Mignolet may be enjoying a bit of a revival since earning himself a recall back to the Reds squad following an injury to understudy Brad Jones, but that doesn’t mean the Anfield outfit aren’t keeping a look-out for some competition for the Belgian.
While the chatter is that the club is almost certainly looking to replace him out-right, there’s been no shortage of candidates for the task. Although a more established shot-stopper in the vein of Chelsea misfit Petr Cech is probably what Liverpool need, it’s more than likely that they’re going to stick with their long-term planning and bring in some young, promising talent — and with the agent of reported target Mat Ryan confirming that the Aussie net-minder would be open to a move to the Premier League in the future, they could be one step closer to doing just that.
“I have read the reports that Liverpool are watching Mat, but I am unaware of concrete interest from them. Of course it does not surprise me that such big clubs are interested in Mat because he is such an outstanding talent” Ryan’s agent Mikkel Beck told Goal.com when asked about his client possibly moving to Merseyside in the future. “Playing in the Premier League would be of interest to Mat as it is one of the best leagues in the world and knowing how ambitious Mat is it is the kind of league he would like to play in.”
The 22-year old, who currently plies his trade with Belgian outfit Club Brugge, has been voted Belgian Pro League ‘keeper of the year two seasons on the hop and has attracted interest from a number of different clubs — though none of it is likely to come to fruition until the summer. “We just re-signed a new contract at Brugge and Mat is very happy there and is part of an ambitious project where he feels he can progress. A move is unlikely this month as Mat is away at the Asian Cup and is fully focused on doing well for Australia” he continued. “We will sit down in the summer and talk about things and if there is something concrete and something special that comes up we will consider it.”
