Manchester United had an opportunity to sign Croatia star Dominik Livakovic over the summer - only to instead move for Martin Dubravka.
Livakovic, who plays his club football for Dinamo Zagreb, was reportedly available for between €5million and €10m. (£4.3m-£8.6m) That asking price could soon go up, though, after his heroics took Zlatko Dalic's team within 90 minutes of a second successive World Cup final.
The 27-year-old kept two clean sheets in the group stage, including a shut-out against Belgium which came despite the 2018 semi-finalists registering 16 shots. He followed that up with penalty shootout heroics in the round of 16 against Japan and the quarter-final against Brazil, denying Champions League winner Rodrygo in the latter.
As reported by The Athletic, United were one of three Premier League clubs who could have moved for Livakovic over the summer. Instead, though, they opted to loan Slovakia international Dubravka from Newcastle while letting Dean Henderson spend the season at Nottingham Forest, and there could well be stiffer competition for Livakovic in the coming summer.
Henderson's move to the City Ground ensured Steve Cooper's side pulled the plug on a €6m Livakovic deal which had reportedly been close. Forest lost first-choice keeper Brice Samba over the summer, opting to loan in Henderson and spend their permanent transfer budget elsewhere.
Like Forest, Leicester lost a keeper to Ligue 1 when Kasper Schmeichel joined Nice. The Foxes put their trust in Danny Ward, though, with the Wales international an ever-present in the Premier League this season.
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United continue to be linked with a new goalkeeper, with suggestions Dubravka could return to parent club Newcastle at the end of his loan spell. Switzerland stopper Yann Sommer is out of contract at Borussia Monchengladbach at the end of the season and has once again been linked with an Old Trafford switch.
Livakovic, meanwhile, signed a new Dinamo deal in 2021 which will keep him at the club until the end of the 2023-24 season unless the club's asking price is met. The Croatian champions have brought in significant transfer fees over the last few summer windows, with Livakovic's international team-mates Lovro Majer and Josko Gvardiol moving on for eight-figure sums.
The goalkeeper will have another chance to impress in the World Cup semi-finals as Croatia take on Argentina. Both sides needed penalties to make it this far, but Croatia boss Dalic's previous comments suggest a repeat would favour his team, after they won two penalty shootouts in 2018 and two more in Qatar this year.
"When it came to penalties, I knew Brazil had lost the game," Dalic said after the quarter-final. "I knew we were favourites then. We always win when it comes to penalties."
