Liverpool are poised to land Brighton and Hove Albion’s illustrious central midfielder Alexis Mac Allister this summer.
As expected, the Merseysiders have no interest in calling it quits there, with further signings in the middle of the park desired.
The uber-reliable Paul Joyce noted three names that will Reds fans will no doubt be intimately familiar with by now; Ryan Gravenberch, Romeo Lavia and Khephren Thuram.
“Finalising the arrival of Mac Allister is the present focus, but Liverpool will also seek other signings in midfield with availability and price shaping their decision making,” the Times journalist wrote. “The club have followed Nice’s Khéphren Thuram as well as Romeo Lavia of Southampton and Ryan Gravenberch of Bayern Munich, with James Milner, Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain having left Liverpool on free transfers.”
The key takeaway, of course, is that the pursuit of any further targets will be determined by the price attached.
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Numbers the name of the game for Liverpool this summer
With us missing out on the financial rewards of Champions League football, it was always inevitable that the summer budget, more expansive still than prior years perhaps, would be impacted.
In that sense, it will have come as music to the ears of our recruitment team that Alexis Mac Allister can be snapped up for a release clause much lower than the £60m reported elsewhere.
In a similar vein, it makes sense for Jorg Schmadtke and Co. to be keen on the likes of Khephren Thuram and Manu Kone – worth £43m and £34.4m respectively – as affordable (and highly talented) options in the market with plenty of developmental potential.