Liverpool confirm Alexis Mac Allister squad number as ‘dream’ transfer sealed

Alexis Mac Allister has hailed a “dream come true” after completing his much-hyped transfer to Liverpool from Brighton.

The Argentine World Cup-winning midfielder was officially unveiled as Jurgen Klopp’s first signing of what is expected to be a busy summer transfer window on Thursday, having put pen to paper on what is understood to be a five-year contract at Anfield and passed a medical.

Mac Allister will receive the coveted no10 shirt at Liverpool that has been vacant since Sadio Mane’s departure to Bayern Munich last summer, with the Reds said to have triggered a complex release clause in his Brighton contract reportedly worth as little as £35million.

The 24-year-old is unlikely to be the only major midfield arrival on Merseyside this summer as Klopp instigates a rebuild in that area that many fans feel is long overdue, with Liverpool having gone from title contenders to missing the top four and Champions League qualification altogether during a difficult 2022-23 campaign.

The club are believed to have held talks with Borussia Monchengladbach’s Manu Kone and Khephren Thuram of Nice, with the likes of James Milner, Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain all departing at the end of their respective contracts.

“It feels amazing. It’s a dream come true, it’s amazing to be here and I can’t wait to get started,” Mac Allister told Liverpool’s official website in his first interview.

“I wanted to be in [from] the first day of pre-season, so it’s good that everything is done. I’m looking forward to meeting my teammates.

“It was a fantastic year for me – World Cup, what we achieved with Brighton – but now it’s time to think about Liverpool and try to be a better player and a better human being every day.

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“Since I won the World Cup, I said that I want to win more trophies and I think that this club will help me to do that – that’s the aim and when you are in a big club like this one you have to win trophies. So, that’s what I want.

“Since I arrived here, I can see how big this club is – the players we have, the staff, everyone. I’m really pleased and looking forward to playing for this club.”