Suspicion club bought player from Liverpool as a ‘marketing stunt’ – Manager has his say

AS Monaco signing striker Takumi Minamino has been labelled as a ‘marketing stunt’ that is yet to work out for the Ligue 1 side.

That’s according to L’Equipe, who cover the player’s transfer today and the growing suspicion that it may not have been done entirely for footballing reasons.

They explain that the Japanese striker’s ‘convincing performance’ at Clermont playing as a striker has ‘finally earned’ him some points with Monaco after failing to impress since moving from Liverpool in the summer.

Minamino has only been in the starting 11 for 32% of the time this season and featured in just 462 league minutes so far, spending most of the campaign sat on the bench.

That’s led to questions being raised given he cost €15m to sign from Liverpool in the summer transfer window.

Manager Philippe Clement recently commented on that stating “It’s simple, there are only eleven places in the team, “Taki” has been doing great in training for a while, he was ready.

“I give a chance to the players who are ready, but unfortunately I can’t give gifts to all those who work well in training. (Myron) Boadu was also good in training.”

While that is the case, and Minamino impressed against Clermont, L’Equipe say the reality is that he has ‘done little’ for Monaco since his arrival.

In fact, the lack of eminent displays has been ‘reawakening the idea’ that he was signed from Liverpool primarily as a ‘marketing stunt’ and a way to open up the Asian markets for the club.

The forward had ‘disappeared from the radar’ before his re-emergence in Auvergne, where he was substituted in the 85^th minute.

Whether he can build on it remains to be seen, with competition for places in the forward line fierce, something the player has already suffered from, leading to worries about the reasoning behind the move.