Jesper Lindstrom reveals why he chose to join Napoli over Liverpool
- Jesper Lindstrom was a summer target for Liverpool
- Danish winger ended up joining Napoli for €30m
- Explains decision was down to it being the smarter move
Jesper Lindstrom has confirmed that Liverpool showed interest in him during the summer transfer window, but he considered joining Napoli instead to be the smarter move.
Having started out at Brondby, Lindstrom rose to prominence as part of the Eintracht Frankfurt team that won the Europa League in 2022. The Dane then went on to score nine goals in all competitions last season and ended up joining Napoli for around €30m (£26m).
Where Lindstrom would hope to play, either as a right winger or 'number 10', Liverpool already have the likes of Mohamed Salah, Cody Gakpo and Diogo Jota. Dominik Szoboszlai is also mainly known as an attacking midfielder but has been playing deeper since his arrival.
Not only will Lindstrom get to play Champions League football this season with Napoli, who were last week drawn into a group with Real Madrid, Braga and Union Berlin, but he thinks there will be greater opportunities for consistent playing time as well.
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"There was Liverpool [interest] after all, but would I get playing time?" he told Tipsbladet in his native Denmark. "Would it be smart to go to Liverpool? I'm a Liverpool fan, it says it everywhere. So it could also be an insanely cool experience. But if I'm not playing, I might as well sit and watch them on TV for another club. I'm at an age now where I have to play some football.
He continued: "That's why I think Napoli is a good change. It is a top club in the world and they have expressed that I will play and I will get a lot of chances."
Having started the season with Eintracht, Lindstrom made his Napoli debut off the bench over the weekend in the closing stages of a 2-1 Serie A defeat to Lazio.
LISTEN NOW TO 90MIN'S TALKING TRANSFERS PODCAST
On this edition of Talking Transfers, part of the 90min podcast network, Scott Saunders is joined by Toby Cudworth, Graeme Bailey and Sean Walsh to discuss the deals that did and didn't happen on deadline day. They talk over Ryan Gravenberch's move to Liverpool, why Joao Palhinha didn't join Bayern Munich, Sofyan Amrabat's loan to Man Utd and more.
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