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We’ve been here before. So has Lucas Leiva.

The Liverpool midfielder is used to dealing with speculation about his future. Every transfer window sees him linked with a move away, every year it is said that his time at Anfield is up.

And yet here we are, nine years and 315 appearances on. He’s still here, and still the speculation rages.

Galatasaray are the club most strongly linked this summer, with the Turkish outfit said to be prepared to pay a couple of million pounds to take the Brazilian to Istanbul.

The understanding from Liverpool’s point of view, though, is that Jurgen Klopp will not sanction Lucas’ sale until he is sure his squad has enough defensive cover to cope. That, of course, will be clear only in the later days of the month.

If reinforcements can’t be secured, then Lucas could, in theory, end up sticking around into a 10th season on Merseyside. Testimonial time?

Here, we look at the pros and cons of letting Lucas go...

Reasons to move him on

The footballing one...

He’s well thought of as a person, and rightly so, but it’s been a struggle for Lucas to prove himself in a footballing sense.

Unfairly maligned in his early years, the knee injury he suffered in 2011 just as he was starting to morph into a defensive midfielder of real stature set him back a long way. He missed out on the club’s last trophy, and has never recaptured the form he had showed before his ACL went.

He started 29 games last season and 26 the season before, but has convinced only sporadically.

His weaknesses are ones that a Jurgen Klopp side really cannot afford. He is not the quickest nor the most energetic, and he tends to pick up at least one muscular injury a season. He doesn’t score goals or make them, and Liverpool have plenty of central midfielders who can, in theory, do more than he.

He’s approaching 30, and it seems unlikely that he could become a key figure under the German, especially with no European football offering scope for experimentation this season.

The financial one...

Lucas is entering the final year of his current contract, and so would be able to leave on a free next summer if he wished.

His wages are not insignificant, given his long service, and for someone who would be battling to secure a place on the bench, it doesn’t make much sense to have that kind of money being swallowed up on a weekly basis. Especially with younger midfield players – Marko Grujic, Kevin Stewart, Ovie Ejaria – waiting in the wings.

The rumoured fee - £2m or thereabouts – would not make a huge difference to Liverpool’s budget, but every little helps. It’ll pay the salary of a first-team player, for example.

The sentimental one...

The one thing rarely considered by fans when discussing issues such as this is; what does the player himself actually want?

You would imagine that Lucas, who will turn 30 in January, is at the stage of his career where regular football is top of the agenda. He’s had his battles at Liverpool, and can hold his head high.

Speaking to Lucas, he’s not the type to settle for training all week and then having Saturdays off, or for collecting his wages without worrying about the pressures of playing. He’s a proud professional, and may well feel that the time is right to move on.

And while sentiment in football can be dangerous, it would be fitting if Liverpool did all they could for their longest serving player.

Reasons to keep him

The footballing one...

It has to be said that Lucas’ stint as a centre back last season caught plenty by surprise. But while there was the odd hiccup (West Ham away) the experiment generally was a decent one.

He was excellent at Wembley in the Capital One Cup final, penalty kick notwithstanding, and showed that he could, in a crisis, be called upon.

He has his faults – conceding cheap free kicks chief among them – but has bags of experience and is a specialist holding midfield player. There aren’t many of them in the current squad, especially ones who can play at the back as well.

The financial one...

As stated, the fee Liverpool would receive for Lucas is not particularly substantial, even if the club would save close to £3m on his wages were he to leave.

What price experience, having someone like that around the place for another season?

OK, not the most convincing of arguments, granted.

The sentimental one...

There have been myriad departures from Liverpool over the past couple of seasons. Indeed, prior to this week’s friendly with Milan, the ECHO published a picture of the last time the sides met, back in 2014.

There were just three survivors from the starting line-up that day, and Lucas was one.

Some would argue that such a high turnover of players is justified, given the club’s on-pitch struggles. But chopping and changing year upon year can also have a detrimental effect. You need some continuity in there.

Lucas is very much an adopted Scouser – he’s even got the accent going on now – and is a vocal, popular figure at Melwood and in the dressing room.

He’d be missed if he were to leave, especially by the younger players.