Liverpool among teams who can trigger German defender's release clause

The summer transfer window has seen a mass exodus from Anfield, as several key figures in Liverpool's structure have departed the club. Whether it was the planned exit of squad mainstays in Mo Salah, Andy Robertson, or Ibrahima Konate, all of whom stayed out the duration of their contracts with the Reds, or the sudden sacking of Arne Slot.

The potential exits from Merseyside don't stop with those four figures, as Curtis Jones and Federico Chiesa have also been linked with moves away from Anfield, with both players being targeted by various Serie A sides. But as they see players leave the team, they'll have to bring in a fresh batch to fill in their respective slots, which has led the Reds to being linked to the likes of Yan Diomande, and more recently, Nico Schlotterbeck, as Liverpool are among the only teams who can activate a clause in his contract, according to a recent report.

As reported by TEAMtalk, the Reds are one of three teams in the world that can activate the release clause in the German's contract, with the other two being Real Madrid and Barcelona. The price tag required to activate the fee is £60m, which should be more than doable for Liverpool, given some of their potential exits, and those that have already happened.

Why would Liverpool target Schlotterbeck?

While some players might fail to live up to the price tags assigned to them by the selling clubs, it's safe to imagine that this wouldn't be the case for the German defender, who has been a mainstay at the Signal Iduna Park for four seasons at this point. In his most recent season, Schlotterbeck became a threat on both ends of the pitch, getting involved in six goals, while making 38 interceptions on the defensive end, and winning 48 tackles.

All of these efforts were among the reasons that Schlotterbeck is a perennial figure in Germany's national team set-up, which has carried over to the 2026 FIFA World Cup, as the Borussia Dortmund star found himself on the score sheet following a header early on in the match.

It's worth noting that his work and presence on the defensive end of the pitch make him comparable to the recently departed Konate, who was one of Liverpool's two anchors in their backline, alongside Virgil Van Dijk, of course.

For now, if any of the three teams decide to activate Schlotterbeck's release clause, it will be something to look out for in the months to come as next season crawls closer by the day.

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