The Catalan giants have publicly stated that they plan to try again for free agents after successful deals for the likes of Franck Kessie, Andreas Christensen, Marcos Alonso and Hector Bellerin this summer, and now Keita is one of the players they’re looking at, according to Sport.
Keita has had his ups and downs as a Liverpool player, but at this point it perhaps makes sense that he doesn’t have a long-term future at Anfield due to increased competition in Jurgen Klopp’s squad.
Many Reds fans will also likely feel that Keita hasn’t quite lived up to expectations due to some problems with injuries and general consistency, so it might be time to move on.
The Hoops were reportedly interested in signing the 24-year-old on loan last summer but the former Liverpool player’s wages were said to have put a stop to negotiations.
However, with Ibe now available on a free, supporters on Twitter have been discussing whether manager Neil Lennon should take a risk on him:
His record with Bournemouth doesn’t make for good reading, having scored just five goals in 92 appearances following his £15m to the south coast in 2016.
Ibe was heralded as a promising young talent when he broke into Liverpool’s first team but that was a long time ago and any comparisons to Scott Sinclair are tenuous at best.
The Englishman had already starred for Swansea in the Championship and the Premier League, before struggling at Manchester City and Aston Villa. Unlike Ibe, he did have a proven track record.
With the player available on a free, though, Lennon may think it is worth taking a chance.
