Liverpool transfer this summer is almost certain as plans made amid Alisson speculation

Once Liverpool have bid their final farewells to Jurgen Klopp and officially appointed Arne Slot as the German’s successor, it is inevitable where supporter attention will turn next.

The Reds’ season comes to an end on Sunday as Liverpool host Wolves before entering a brand new era under their new Dutch head coach. And while there are a number of expiring contracts that need to be resolved at Anfield one way or another over the next 12 months, the next point of interest for Kopites will very much be the summer transfer window as Slot’s first squad starts to take shape.

Appointed as head coach, the 45-year-old will not have the same power as the departing Klopp when it comes to making transfer decisions. Instead sporting director Richard Hughes is set to head up the recruitment team, assisted by the returning David Woodfine and working alongside the likes of head of recruitment Dave Fallows, chief scout Barry Hunter, and director of research Will Spearman.

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Between them and the Reds’ new head coach, they will all be involved in this summer's transfer dealings. And while it remains to be seen just how busy Liverpool intend to be in the window, with onlookers debating whether they need strengthening in defence, midfield, and attack, there is perhaps an obvious signing the club will need to complete.

It looks set to be a summer of change for the Reds in the goalkeeping department, with both coaches John Achterberg and Jack Robinson set to leave the club’s backroom team. But all three of Liverpool’s senior shot-stoppers have also been linked with their own moves away.

Alisson Becker is reportedly attracting big-money interest from Saudi Arabia, while, after five years as the Brazilian’s deputy, it seems inconceivable that second-choice Caoimhin Kelleher would stay put at Anfield if the 25-year-old is to remain as only back-up.

While a departure for the Brazilian would open the door for the Republic of Ireland international to become Liverpool’s new number one, at this point you would suspect that it is Kelleher who is more likely to move on, in search of first team football, than Alisson.

Elsewhere, veteran third-choice Adrian has already hinted that while he hasn’t held talks with the Reds about his future, he expects to move on at the end of his contract this summer, with the 37-year-old eyeing up a return to Spain.

“I would like to return to La Liga after 11 seasons in the Premier League," said Adrian, speaking to Mucho Deporte. "It would be the end of a cycle. I’m still ready to compete. I feel very good despite being 37…

“I haven’t sat down with Liverpool yet either. I don’t rule out that we could have a pending conversation, but it is true that we will be looking out of the corner of our eye to see what happens in La Liga."

Realistically, Liverpool aren’t going to wave off all three of their senior goalkeepers in the same summer, though two exits don’t seem beyond the realms of possibility. While the likes of Vítezslav Jaros could look to force his way up the pecking order at Anfield following a successful loan at Sturm Grav, should he not seek another exit, the arrival of a new goalkeeper at Anfield this summer appears logical as a result.

The Reds have actually already been linked with one shot-stopper, with the Daily Mail claiming earlier this week that they are monitoring Southampton veteran Alex McCarthy as they draw up a shortlist of back-up goalkeepers.

The one-time England international has finished the season strongly with the Saints since regaining his place at the expense of the injured Gavin Bazunu, and is looked to win promotion back to the Premier League via the play-offs with the South Coast club.

However, out of contract in the summer, the 34-year-old could prove to be an attractive option for Premier League sides pursuing a back-up goalkeeper, given both McCarthy’s homegrown - when it comes to naming 25-man squads for domestic and European competition - and potential free agent status.

Newcastle United are also said to be interested in the shot-stopper as a result, while Celtic, managed by former Reds boss Brendan Rodgers, said to be considering McCarthy as they consider replacements for Joe Hart - who will retire at the end of the season. Coincidentally, Kelleher has also been linked with a move to the Hoops in recent months.

Liverpool have actually been interested in signing McCarthy before, with Rodgers the manager when the Reds made a move for the goalkeeper back in 2014.

The pair had worked together at Reading, and were poised to reunite at Anfield, only for McCarthy to end up snubbing Liverpool’s advances after an 11th hour phone call from Harry Redknapp, then manager of Queens Park Rangers, when about to board a train to Merseyside.

"The move to QPR was strange because I'd worked with Brendan [Rodgers] before at Reading and he wanted to bring me to Liverpool," explained McCarthy on the Yours, Mine, Away! Podcast in 2022. "The morning I ended up going to QPR, I was about to get on the train to Liverpool but then I had Harry Redknapp call me.

"I knew at Liverpool I wasn't just going to go in and play, obviously he couldn't guarantee me any football but Harry Redknapp called me and obviously he knew about Liverpool and said there are definitely more opportunities to play here [at QPR] so it was a tough situation.

"Working with Brendan at Liverpool or Harry at QPR...I was stood at the train station with my dad and my agent going over it and over it and because I had been playing at Reading, I wanted to carry on playing so I ended up going to QPR and signing there.

"I'm a big believer that things always happen for a reason. It took me a while to get into the team and when I did, I played against Liverpool and had to go off with a quad strain so I was out of the team again and Rob [Green] was doing well so it was a weird one.

"I had a chance to go to Liverpool but chose to go to QPR. I was there for a season, we got relegated and then I went to Crystal Palace."

QPR would sign McCarthy for an undisclosed fee, with Redknapp backing the then 24-year-old to be 'a future England goalkeeper one'. He would win one Three Lions cap in November 2018, as a half-time substitute in a 3-0 friendly win over the United States at Wembley - nearly five-and-a-half years after his first call-up.

Meanwhile, he would make just four appearances in his solitary season at Loftus Road with his QPR debut ironically coming against Liverpool in October 2014 as the Reds ran out 3-2 winners.

But while he snubbed Liverpool in the hope of more game-time in the capital, it could be a different story 10 years on if they came calling again, with McCarthy now at the end of his career.

Yet regardless of whether the Reds reignite interest in the veteran, this summer will almost certainly see changes in the goalkeeping department at Anfield. And given the speculation surrounding the futures of Alisson, Kelleher, and Adrian, Liverpool’s recruitment team will almost certainly be scouring the market for possible alternatives, with such a search going hand-in-hand with reports linking them with McCarthy in the first place.