Liverpool’s €35 million Brughmans signing signals end for Mamardashvili

Liverpool have signed 18‑year‑old Lucca Brughmans from Genk on a long‑term deal worth €35 million (£29.9 million), with the Belgian due at Anfield next summer. The move follows goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili, bought for £30 million from Valencia, being reduced to second‑choice after a solitary Carabao Cup appearance.

Mamardashvili’s troubled spell at Anfield

Giorgi Mamardashvili officially joined Liverpool in 2025 after a £30 million transfer from Valencia, but he spent the 2024/25 campaign on loan at the Spanish club. Since arriving, the 25‑year‑old former Dinamo Tbilisi goalkeeper has been firmly established as second‑choice at Anfield.

In total he has featured 20 times across all competitions, including ten Premier League outings that covered Alisson Becker’s injury. Across those 20 games he conceded 34 goals and kept only three clean sheets, a record that did little to convince the Reds.

His Premier League record reads three wins and six defeats in the ten matches he started. Any hope of supplanting Alisson vanished when Liverpool blocked the Brazilian’s exit last summer, leaving Mamardashvili with just one competitive appearance under manager Andoni Iraola – the 3‑1 Carabao Cup win over Tottenham last week.

Brughmans arrives as Liverpool’s future keeper

The 18‑year‑old Belgian is a graduate of Genk’s renowned youth academy, the same system that produced Thibaut Courtois and Chelsea’s Mike Penders. Already established as Genk’s No 1, Brughmans has been dubbed the “next Courtois” because of his size, presence and distribution skills.

He joins Liverpool on a long‑term contract as part of a package deal worth €35 million (£29.9 million). The transfer will be finalised next summer, meaning he will not feature for the Reds this season but will train with the squad in the meantime.

What the double signing means for both sides

European football expert Andy Brassell told.com: “Liverpool won just three of Mamardashvili’s ten Premier League games last season and lost six… it’s hard because Mamardashvili hasn’t really had a go.” He added that Mamardashvili “needs first‑team football” and is “not going to be first choice for Liverpool”.

Brassell also praised Brughmans, saying he is “a really, really gifted distributor with feet and hands” and that “if you sign Brughmans now, maybe you do move on Mamardashvili”. The expert believes the young Belgian could eventually become the successor to Alisson.

For Liverpool, the Brughmans deal signals a long‑term plan to secure a successor while Mamardashvili’s future looks increasingly uncertain. The club may look to move the Georgian on, whereas Brughmans will aim to develop under the guidance of Alisson and the coaching staff before challenging for the No 1 spot.