Leipzig

With "news" coming out today (the 29th) about Ibrahim Konate moving to Liverpool, I wanted to take stock of what the situation at Leipzig is looking like going forward and offer my thoughts on how things should proceed.

Outs: may as well get these mentioned right up front. 2 CB's are going, at the very least, in Konate and Upamecano. Personally, I am not a fan of BOTH going, especially given how young they still are (21 and 22), but it was inevitable with the nature of the club. Sabitzer has long been rumored to leave, and with his contract winding down and the player making it clear he won't renew, it's likely he'll go as well. Forsberg is another, given his age and drop off from the figure he once was in the Leipzig team. I assume Henrichs and Kluivert will return to their clubs as well. Hannes Wolf will join Gladbach permanently as well.

Ins: already signed are Angelino, who's been on loan for two seasons, center halves Gvardiol and Simakan, and Brian Brobbey from Ajax. The way I see it, all of these players fit in well with the back 3 Nagelsmann often uses. Gvardiol on the left of the back three, Simakan on the right, and obviously Angelino as the left wing back.

Rest of squad:

Defense- Halstenberg, Orban, Klostermann, Mukiele, Angelino, SIMAKAN, GVARDIOL

Midfield- Adams, Kampl, Laimer, Olmo, Nkunku, Haidara, Szoboszlai, Samardzic, Lookman

Attack- Hwang, Sorloth, Poulsen, Brobbey

When I look at the squad, I see versatility and strength in the midfield depth, and that's even without Sabitzer. I know people like to harp on formations or systems, but at the end of the day Nagelsmann does what he wants, whether it works or not. That said, let's just assume a 3-4-2-1 for the sake of this exercise. Halstenberg and Klostermann can play either side of the back three or at wing back. Mukiele has the physique of a CB but is used more as an RWB or RB. I already mentioned Angelino. That leaves the two CB's I mentioned already, who also can play either side of the three, and Orban who as captain I place in the middle of the three. In midfield, I'm not sure what's going on with Laimer, and if he'll return to what he was prior to this injury absence. Ideally, I'd have one if him and Adams paired with Kampl or Haidara as the deeper pair, with two of Olmo/Nkunku/Szoboszlai/Samardzic behind the striker. One other take I'll just mention already is a 3-5-2, with one of the deeper lying guys flanked by two more attacking threats and two strikers, as I see a strike partnership as the most efficient way to get the best of out those guys up front. Olmo can also play up there, by the way. The reason I mention this is you could still have the solidity of two deeper lying guys, with one #10 and two strikers, or Olmo supporting the striker. But yeah, lots of options, though I still somewhat question whether there will be enough goals in the team.

Targets:

The more I think about this, the less sure I am about this pick, but I'd be looking at another LWB in case Angelino is injured or unavailable. Gvardiol, at least from what I gather, seems like the modern "elbow back" as it was eloquently put recently on Twitter, in that he's neither a "pure CB" nor a modern fullback. I'd be personally looking to loan a guy in, or get either a really young or "veteran" back up. Let's take Sessegnon as an example. He's at a midtable club in Germany, and I doubt he'll get time at Spurs with Mourinho there. Thus, give him a step up and get him into Leipzig. Though, he'd likely face a lack of game time given the Angelino thing... A clever one, also Spanish, is Javi Galán. He plays at Huesca, who will likely go down, and he's 26. Plays in a back three as well, and puts in good service. Another random set is the Wolves duo of Ait-Nouri and Vinagre. Neither has been good for Wolves, as Jonny Otto still starts despite being right footed, and both are young. Leipzig will be in CL again, meaning they'll have a decent amount of games, so rotation is necessary. The other option here is to go back 4, with one of the left-footed guys I mentioned playing LB at all times, though with obviously different roles.

This will depend on what's going on with Kampl, because Sabitzer alone isn't a killer blow, but both being unavailable would necessitate a CM coming in. Two guys I could see filling a more "DLP" type role (rather than a ball winner) are Sander Berge and Teun Koopmeiners. Both are 23, larger individuals more on the technical side than physically gifted. Berge has been injured, which is less than ideal, but he's only been in England 1.5 seasons and his team is dreadful and will be going to the second division. I wouldn't say he's been great by any means, and he isn't a fit in that Sheffield United system (overperformed first season, vastly under this season). Koop is one who will be making a step up, and again that's always a risk. However, he's clearly too good for Dutch domestic football, and this is a perfect step before joining a massive club. Berge is taller, but Koop is more mobile and a better passer.

If Orban or one of the hybrid CB/FB's were to go, I'd look for another guy to fill the back line. It's looking much less likely now that Brighton will be relegated, but Ben White would be perfect for the middle of the back three. On a cheaper scale, Bornauw from Cologne could work as well. He's 22, perfect Red Bull age, and Cologne are definitely not a lock to stay up at this point. He's one of those I see thriving in a more attacking system and with decent players around him. A very Red Bull thing to do would be to sign another French CB, such as Loic Bade from Lens or Bafode Diakite from Toulouse. An FM legend for me is Becir Omeragic from Zurich, who is only 19. I won't lie and pretend I've watched him, so... Lastly, big Kris Ajer from Celtic. At 22, he's another at a great age for a move, and given he's Danish playing in Scotland, moving abroad isn't something that should be a huge issue. Large lad, good on the ball, seems a solid fit.

One other position not necessarily required but that I'd improve is RB/RWB. I have a bit of an issue with playing a CM/DM out wide, such as Adams or Laimer, as it's wasting their ability in the middle of the pitch. I also question why Mukiele and Klostermann play seemingly opposite roles to what I feel they should be, in terms of body type and general footballing ability. Digging into the Spanish pool of talent again, I'd be looking at Pedro Porro. He's on loan at league-leading Sporting from Man City, who are already awash with RB's, so he could go on loan again or be sold with a buy-back or something. Three other RB's I'll group together as they're in relegation battles are Jadon Bogle at Blades, Gabriele Zappa at Cagliari, and Maxime Busi at Parma. All could go down, realistically, and each provides upside and current ability. There's also Dodo at Shakhtar, who I won't pretend to have scouted extensively. Two others, continuing the French connection, are at Rennes in Brandon Soppy and Sacha Boey (on loan at Dijon).

Outlook

All in all, I'm still relatively positive on the situation at the club. They're not at Dortmund's level, much less that of Bayern, but what do you expect for a plastic club that's been around for like a decade? The model works, the football is exciting, they're building a bit of a brand... The main thing for me is establishing depth back in the squad, and making sure the players want to be there. They pay well for a "small club", and once guys get too big for it you just let them go. That's the model. Goals are missing, but Brobbey could be the one to fill that gap.

Personally, if I were to pick one player from each category, it would be Ait-Nouri on loan (Galán second choice) for back up LWB, Koopmeiners at DM (but Berge a great backup option). Any of Ajer, Bornauw and Bade would be great options at CB, and for the right flank I'd choose Porro, and if that's not possible one of the Rennes lads.