Rodgers and Laudrup both targeting Ola John…
Liverpool and Swansea are both interested in 21-year-old Dutch international Ola John, reports Dutch website AD.nl.
The winger, currently contracted to Benfica, is unhappy at his failure to secure a regular first-team spot for the Portuguese side. As a result, his club are happy to let him leave on loan until the summer, where they will likely try to ship him out permanently.
Because of this, both of the free-flowing Premier League sides wants to add the pacey wide men to their squads for the second half of the season.
In order to secure his signature though, Swansea and Liverpool will have to fight off competition from Ajax, who similarly want to take him on loan until the summer. Their coach Frank De Boer is a fan of the one cap wonder, who he reckons can do a job on either wing.
Liverpool have been linked extensively with Mohamed Salah, and John is a similar (if less highly rated) player. Both can play on either wing, and prefer to play on the opposite flank to their favoured foot, which helps them cut in and shoot. The Reds need wide reinforcements, with Victor Moses struggling to impress since arriving on loan in the summer, and Raheem Sterling still only a teenager – meaning John could boost Rodgers’ options if Salah is unavailable or too expensive.
Swansea used Nathan Dyer in this wide attacking role, but the Englishman has been ruled out for the rest of the season with ligament damage, meaning John could come in as a direct replacement.
The young winger moved to Benfica in the summer of 2012 for €9m, but has not yet maximised his undeniable potential. During the 2011-12 season with FC Twente, John registered a remarkable 22 assists, and scored nine goals too.
If either Swansea or Liverpool could get this kind of form out of the Dutchman, his short-term loan would likely turn into something more permanent.
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