Liverpool signed Alisson from Roma in 2018, and the decision to make him the world’s most expensive goalkeeper has certainly been vindicated
Jurgen Klopp made many successful decisions as Liverpool manager, but acquiring Alisson as his first-choice goalkeeper could be one of his best.
Klopp signed Alisson from AS Roma in the summer of 2018 for a whopping £65m, making him the priciest goalkeeper in the world at that time. The move proved to be a masterstroke as Liverpool went on to clinch the Champions League, Premier League and FIFA Club World Cup in the following years.
The Brazilian is now considered one of the greatest goalkeepers ever, but a former Premier League goalie believes Klopp and goalkeeper coach John Achterberg had to make a strong argument to bring him to Anfield due to the hefty financial commitment. Former Manchester United and Wrexham goalkeeper Ben Foster has praised the pair for pushing the deal so hard.
“When Liverpool were looking at Alisson, he’s at Roma, he’s ripping it up and everybody can see that he’s just a new breed of goalie,” he said on his ‘Fozcast’ podcast. “He looks incredible, he’s agile, he reads the game and he’s got everything about him.
“Jurgen Klopp’s gone to John Achterberg and said, ‘We’re going to go and watch this guy at Roma – will you come and watch him with me?’ Then they’ve got to do the maths and the calculations and it’s going to cost about 70 odd million, and wages are going to be crazy.
“They’ve got to take this to the board and hope they say yes, but they would have fought Alisson’s corner so hard. You’re getting a guaranteed number one for the next five or 10 years, and it’s worth every single penny.
“Then when it translates, and you get him through the door, and he hits the ground running and turns into one of the best goalkeepers in the world, it’s a pat on the back.”
Achterberg has been candid about how he brought Alisson to the club’s attention, outlining the definitive recommendations he passed to Klopp. The Dutch coach first noticed Alisson back in 2013 during his stint with Brazilian outfit Internacional and instantly saw his promise.
In 2016, while Liverpool faced Roma in a pre-season friendly featuring Alisson and Mohamed Salah for the Serie A side, Achterberg’s earlier scouting was validated. In an interview with This Is Anfield, Achterberg said: “I already told the boss about him and then obviously he liked the goalie in that game. I said: ‘Yeah, that’s the one I was telling you about.’
“But we had also talked about other goalies. I talked in the past when (Manuel) Neuer was still at Schalke, when (Samir) Handanovic was at Udinese, when (Marc-Andre) Ter Stegen was in Germany at ‘Gladbach. At the time the owners wanted to try and find the best goalie out there, and I said to the boss: ‘That’s the only goalie I would pay money for.'”
Klopp took the advice on board, and Liverpool’s investment paid off massively. Last summer, Alisson demonstrated his loyalty to Liverpool by turning down a tempting offer from the Saudi Pro League.
The 32-year-old goalkeeper made it clear he plans to honour his contract at Anfield, stating: “I have a three-year contract with Liverpool. I don’t think the future is definitive for anyone, but in football, I hope to fulfil my contract here in England and, then, after that…I’m open to returning to Internacional.”
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