Liverpool legend Dietmar Hamann still has his doubts on whether Thiago Alcantara would be a success at Anfield.
Thiago is expected to complete his move to Liverpool within the next 24 hours or less after his deal was finalized.
The 29-year-old already bid an emotional farewell to the Bayern supporters on Friday morning ahead of the move.
A new adventure awaits Thiago where he will star under Klopp in the heart of Liverpool’s midfield.
While the Anfield faithful are buzzing to see the addition of a top midfielder, Reds legend Dietmar Hamann has downplayed the Spaniard being a ‘phenomenal’ signing.
He says Thiago was never considered a key player in the Bayern side, adding that he only played in their Champions League games due to injuries in the squad.
“Bayern Munich would have preferred to keep him of course, but having said that, he’s been there seven years and he probably played his best game for the club in his last one, the Champions League final,” Hamann told talkSPORT.
“As it was now with [Thomas] Muller being back in form and [Leon] Goretzka coming into the team, if everybody was fit towards the end of the season Thiago wouldn’t have played. He only played because [Benjamin] Pavard couldn’t play in the final and [Joshua] Kimmich had to play right-back.”
“So I’m not too sure… The game in England is a lot quicker than Germany. If he thinks he can’t be pressed, than good luck to him.”
“He’s 29 now, he’s coming to a different country and a different type of football, I think we’ve seen that with the debuts of [Timo] Werner and [Kai] Havertz at Chelsea and how difficult they found it playing against Brighton.”
Hamann also warned that Thiago could be another ‘Keita’ at Liverpool. The Guinean joined the Reds from Leipzig in a 48m move back in the summer of 2018 but has failed to hit full gear till date.
He added: “We’ve seen it with Keita, who is a brilliant player, but he’s been there two years now and he hasn’t really arrived at Liverpool. They were talking about possibly moving him on in the summer.”
“I’m not saying it’ll be a similar story, but I’ll be interested to see how he does and how Klopp plays him because I never really saw him as a holding midfielder because you need a bit of defensive thinking to play in that role.”
“Thiago did a brilliant job in the position in the final against Paris, but he’s not really a defence-minded player.
“I’m not too sure. He’s a great player, but whether he suits the English game, it think that remains to be seen.”
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