2020 Tottenham deal proves Liverpool could still face a battle to sign Marc Guehi in 2026

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Liverpool failed to sign Marc Guehi from Crystal Palace on deadline day, but many still expect the deal to materialise in 2026.

The England international becomes a free agent when his contract expires in June 2026, but Fabrizio Romano has already claimed that Liverpool are not giving up and will be at the negotiating table once again next year.

However, the signing of Christian Eriksen for Inter Milan in 2020 proves this Marc Guehi deal might not be as easy as it seems for Liverpool.

Liverpool facing European interest in Marc Guehi

The Guardian believe Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Juventus have all registered their interest in the Crystal Palace No.6 after Liverpool failed to wrap up a £35m deal – due to the indecision of Steve Parish.

At the moment, Liverpool fans think they will sign Guehi for free next summer or for a bargain sum in January, but foreign clubs are able to strike a pre-contract agreement with the defender in January, ahead of a free transfer in the summer.

Not only that, but the aforementioned Eriksen was also nearing free agency in January 2020, and Inter Milan still opted to splash £16.9m on his signature instead of allowing the situation to become a scramble over a freebie in the summer.

Guehi is set to be the most in-demand free agent around next summer, one who boasts 23 caps for England and 135 Premier League appearances by the age of 25.

Therefore, we feel Crystal Palace could still have a bidding war on their hands in January, on the presumption that the likes of Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Juventus would prefer to avoid a summer scramble and aim to get ahead of the chasing pack.

Crystal Palace only paid £18m to sign Guehi from Chelsea in July 2021 – so it is entirely possible that the Eagles recoup this fee, after Tottenham managed to get almost £17m for Eriksen just before his deal ended.

Deal collapse could be a blessing in disguise for Marc Guehi

Had Guehi seen his move to Anfield materialise, he would find himself attempting to break up the formidable partnership of Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate.

That would hardly have been an ideal situation ahead of the World Cup next summer, where the man born in Abidjan will hope to keep his place in the starting XI.

Konate is hesitating over a new deal at Liverpool – so a place could soon open up for Guehi next season – but moving to Merseyside this term may have caused implications for his international career.