Paris Saint-Germain have joined Barcelona in the race to sign Georginio Wijnaldum when his Liverpool contract expires this summer.
Wijnaldum has been a vital part of Liverpool’s success over the last six years, making more than 200 appearances for the club and lifting four trophies, including their first league title since 1990.
However, with his contract running down, the all-action midfielder has shown little inclination to remain at Anfield.
He has been persistently linked with a move to Barcelona, where he would be reunited with Ronald Koeman, his former Netherlands manager.
They combined to great effect at international level, Wijnaldum scoring 10 goals in 18 games under Koeman, including a hat-trick against Estonia.
The coronavirus pandemic has devastated Barcelona’s transfer budget, prompting them to turn their attention to potential free signings like Wijnaldum.
According to Le Parisien, PSG are looking to steal a march on Barcelona, who they comprehensively beat in the Champions League last week.
They see Wijnaldum as a valuable addition to their ranks, with his consistently effective and energetic performances, and experience of winning major honours.
The 30-year-old is in the prime of his career and was a regular starter throughout Liverpool’s Champions League success in 2019, although his most memorable contribution was coming off the bench to score a brace against Barcelona in the second leg of the semi-finals.
Wijnaldum’s influence is typically steady rather than spectacular, providing the platform for Liverpool’s world-class forwards to do the damage.
He would be well-suited to filling a similar role at PSG, who rely on Neymar, Kylian Mbappe and Mauro Icardi to win matches.
Mauricio Pochettino knows Wijnaldum well from their time together in the Premier League, having come up against him on many occasions.
