Arne Slot has revealed that Liverpool came very close to signing Marc Guehi this summer, but the transfer fell through in the final hours of the window.
The 25-year-old centre-back appeared set to move from Crystal Palace to Anfield, with a deal submitted just before the deadline. However, Palace ultimately chose not to sell, leaving Liverpool without any additional defensive reinforcements.
Speaking ahead of the Burnley match, Slot acknowledged the near-deal, saying: “It would be ridiculous to deny we were close to signing Guehi — that’s obvious. These things happen in football… sometimes decisions change at the last moment.”
He expressed his continued respect for the England international but stressed that Liverpool still have plenty of defensive options. “Of course, we wanted to sign him,” Slot said. “But we recently faced Arsenal where Virgil and Ibou played brilliantly, and Joe came on late and performed excellently too. With Giovanni Leoni — who recently received his first international call-up — plus Ryan and Wata, we still have depth in that position.”
Despite the setback, Liverpool’s aggressive transfer strategy was demonstrated by their deadline-day signing of Alexander Isak for £125 million — the same day they had hoped to bring Guehi in.
Slot added, “It’s a shame, not just for us but also for the player. But he’s in a good place at Palace, where he won the Community Shield and FA Cup under a great manager. We’ll see what the future holds for him and for us.”
With Guehi still highly regarded and new defensive reinforcements like Leoni, the coming months will determine whether Liverpool make another attempt to sign him or look elsewhere in future transfer windows.
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