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Liverpool Echo
Liverpool Echo
Sport
Elliott Jackson & Bobby Vincent

Rio Ferdinand makes Kylian Mbappe transfer claim amid Liverpool's Champions League concerns

Rio Ferdinand believes Liverpool will still be able to attract the likes of Kylian Mbappe this summer even if they don't qualify for the UEFA Champions League.

The Reds currently sit eighth in the Premier League table, seven points behind fourth-placed Chelsea, who are unbeaten in 10 matches under new boss Thomas Tuchel.

The likes of Tottenham, West Ham and Everton all hold a game in hand on Liverpool too, so given their poor run of form, finishing for the top four could be a tall order.

Missing out on the Champions League would be a serious dent in Liverpool's revenue and could impact their ability to fund transfer in the summer, though the Frenchman has only one year on his Paris Saint-Germain contract.

However, Ferdinand believes that, even if the club failed to qualify for Europe's elite club competition, they could still attract the biggest names to Anfield.

“Let’s not forget, in the last window they bought Thiago - who was a Champions League winner - and Jota for £40million, so it’s not like they were hanging back," he told BT Sport ahead of the clash against RB Leipzig.

"But injuries play a part, they’ve been decimated by injuries. The biggest thing is the mental side, the mental side now to rebuild after building so much fear into opponents to now with teams swaggering into Anfield - that’s the difference.

“Given the two back-to-back Champions League finals, they’ll still have grace in that area. I think people will still go there with the mindset they can get back. I think they (Haaland and Mbappe) would, yeah. I think someone like Mbappe looks at the way Liverpool play and the manager.

"You look at the manager, the players and the quality they have there, is Klopp still the sort of manager you’d want to play for? I think he still is.”

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