Liverpool have reportedly been offered a chance to sign a player from Real Madrid who could solve one of the biggest issues with which Andoni Iraola is currently faced.
For almost the entirety of their pre-season tour to the United States, the Reds’ head coach didn’t have a single senior centre-back available to him, with Joe Gomez going off injured in the opening minutes of the first friendly against Sunderland.
Sporting director Richard Hughes has just under a month to address that severe squad shortage in the transfer market, and one potential solution has now been thrust into his path.
Liverpool approached over potential Raul Asencio move
According to Graeme Bailey for TEAMtalk on Wednesday, Liverpool have been approached by intermediaries over a possible move for Raul Asencio, who’s been informed that he’s free to leave Real Madrid before the transfer window shuts.
The Reds have a ‘long-standing admiration’ for the 23-year-old and were ‘intrigued’ when notified of the Spaniard’s availability. Iraola himself rates the defender highly and appreciates his versatility of being able to play centrally or on the right.
However, the player himself has no desire to leave the Bernabeu and is determined to fight for his place in Jose Mourinho’s starting XI. There hasn’t been any indication that he’ll depart imminently, with no formal discussions over a transfer as of yet.
Unless Asencio alters his stance, a move to Liverpool is ‘unlikely to advance’ despite the ‘clear admiration’ from Anfield chiefs.
Asencio would be perfect for Liverpool…if he can be convinced
In several ways, the 23-year-old would be the perfect player for the Reds right now.
Whilst predominantly a centre-back, he can also play on the right, a position where LFC have been affected by injury problems for Conor Bradley and Jeremie Frimpong over the past year, with the former set to be sidelined for another few months.
Also, as per the figures below from Fotmob, he’s adept at winning the ball high up the pitch, a trait which’d make him a superb fit for Iraola’s high-pressing tactical blueprint.
| 2025/26 LaLiga | Per 90 minutes | Percentile among positional peers |
| Pass completion | 94% | 94th (top 6%) |
| Successful passes | 58.77 | 86th |
| Clean sheets | 0.37 | 94th |
| Possession won in final third | 0.11 | 82nd |
| Touches in opposition box | 1.11 | 75th |
Alas, Asencio’s reluctance to leave Madrid could make it quite difficult for Hughes to persuade him to come to Anfield this summer, unless the Liverpool powerbrokers make it unmistakably clear to him that he’d be a vital part of the jigsaw on Merseyside.
We’d like to see the Reds’ sporting director doing everything in his power to try and entice the Spaniard to join LFC, unless the defender absolutely isn’t for turning, because signing him would go a long way to relieving one of Iraola’s biggest headaches
