Liverpool are about to leave themselves even more short at centre-back going into the new season
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Liverpool will reportedly send new arrival Ifeanyi Ndukwe out on loan as soon as he joins the club this summer.There has been plenty of excitement over Ndukwe, who the Reds have forked out almost £3m to sign, with the Austrian viewed as a potential first-teamer in the future.However, journalist David Lynch has claimed that that will not be during the 2026/27, with Ndukwe likely to find a temporary club for the new campaign. Which former Liverpool player do you want to see on Andoni Iraola’s coaching staff?
Both are free and available… Photo Credit: Getty Images/Andrew Powell/Liverpool FC Ndukwe likely to leave Liverpool on loanLiverpool’s centre-back options are under scrutiny this summer after Ibrahima Konate walked away from his contract to join Real Madrid.That has left only Jeremy Jacquet, Giovanni Leoni and Virgil van Dijk as senior options, with Joe Gomez also in the mix if he does not also depart.As a result of the youth, lack of numbers and the risk of injury within the Liverpool defensive unit, there has been a line of thinking that Ndukwe could challenge for minutes in cup games and beyond in 26/27.But, writing on his Substack on Friday, Lynch firmly suggests that this will not be the case.Photo by Thomas Pichler/SEPA.Media /Getty ImagesREAD MORE: Who are Liverpool’s likely summer signings as Reds fans told they could buy five moreThe 18-year-old is said to be ‘expected to leave on loan immediately,’ with the suggestion being that he will not even stick around for pre-season with Liverpool.Despite being one of the most talented youngsters at the club, Lynch does not name Ndukwe as one of his young players to watch for the summer friendlies, instead picking fellow January signing Mor Talla Ndiaye as someone who could benefit from Ndukwe leaving.Liverpool taking a risk with NdukweLiverpool are clearly having something of a revolution in terms of their centre-backs this summer, but there is a chance that they are going to leave themselves short again here.Last year’s failure to sign Marc Guehi led to an over-reliance on Konate, and with the Frenchman now replaced by Jacquet, Liverpool are still in the same place, numbers wise.Though he obviously needs patience and time to develop into a proper option, there was a feeling that Ndukwe, along with Ndiaye, could help to supplement the squad next season.That the Austrian will seemingly not be around to do that feels like Liverpool taking a slight risk. A loan could be beneficial in the long run, of course, and Ndukwe could then be ready to play a more serious role in 2027/28, but Liverpool must make sure that if he does go, they are not leaving themselves in danger of making another mess in their defence.
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