Charlton’s Joe Gomez signs for Liverpool

Liverpool have been busy in the summer window as they just announced the signing of Joe Gomez from Charlton Athletic. The England U-19 player just turned 18 in May. He has signed a 5 year deal with Liverpool. Joe Gomez cost £3.5m. Liverpool beat off rival Premier League clubs such as Arsenal, Manchester United and Bournemouth for his signing.

Joe Gomez is an experienced player at the youth teams of England having featured heavily for the English U-17s and is now a part of the England U-19s squad. He featured in 21 Football League Championship matches as he helped Charlton Athletic improve to a 12 place finish in his first season with the senior team.

Joe Gomez stands at 6’2 tall and is capable of playing as a Centre Back and Right back. He is comfortable with the ball at his feet, being called a “Ball-Playing” Centre Back. He has already been compared to his childhood idol, Rio Ferdinand. He has been a threat on the counter with devastating runs up the field. He is rarely dominated physically when defending.

“It’s a dream come true, it’s a bit surreal and it hasn’t really hit me yet. But I’m buzzing and just excited to get started. The club has got great history and it’s a great club, and one that I’ve always been following from when I was young. The style of football and the top players here was somewhere that I wanted to go and get better and learn, and play good football. It was an easy decision.” said Gomez in an interview after passing his medical at Liverpool.

How can Joe Gomez help improve the squad? As it seems there will be a major overhaul like last season.

At 18, he has just started his career, he can be more easily molded to suit a style of play. His age is another factor, as it could be a long term singing in the long run, but he does have, for his age a good amount of experience in England and the International stage, ensuring he will not start with cold feet. With his physicality, speed, ball-control skills, he is the kind of centre back that Liverpool need and would definitely be an upgrade over Sebastian Coates who looks set to leave for Sunderland. Being signed for £3.5m, there is not too much of a risk attached to such a small transfer fee, but it could end up paying massive dividends in the long run, if he can become a world class anchor for the Liverpool defence.