Calafiori BOOST, Rabiot FREE, Kelleher U-TURN, Summer CLEAROUT - Liverpool FC news recap
Liverpool are only in for one player during the summer transfer window - Lille centre back Leny Yoro - and they expect him to move to Real Madrid.
That’s according to James Pearce in the Athletic, who claims that the rumour mill around Anfield is currently in “overdrive” despite a lack of transfer activity this summer.
It's not what fans will want to hear from Richard Hughes - the new sporting director - and Michael Edwards - FSG's CEO of Football, with supporters expecting the squad to be improved from last season.
The Reds have been linked with plenty of players during the off-season, their first in the post-Jurgen Klopp era, with centre backs, midfielders and wide attackers the most frequently mentioned positions to be filled.
Contract uncertainty over Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk and Trent Alexander-Arnold - whose terms expire in 2025 - mean long-term solutions are being sought in defence and on the wings.
Nonetheless, only the links with Yoro have got “real substance”, according to Pearce. And, even so, the club believe he will end up at Real Madrid.
Yoro, 18, is also out of contract in 2025 and Lille will not want to lose their academy star for nothing next summer.
Liverpool could make THREE signings
Liverpool are expected to make a maximum of three summer signings for Arne Slot's debut campaign, according to a recent report.
It promises to be an interesting summer for the Reds regardless of incomings and outgoings, with new head coach Slot taking charge of his first pre-season with the club.
The 45-year-old will participate in his first Liverpool press conference this Friday having already conducted his first interview on Merseyside.
He will need time to assess his squad ahead of the new season, which will prove a challenge given that many of his brightest stars are currently on international duty.
As a result, Liverpool may be more active in the transfer market towards the end of the window, with very little in the way of movement so far.
However, any supporters expecting a flurry of activity are unlikely to be satisfied as Liverpool prepare for a maximum of three first-team signings according to a report from Football Insider.
They suggest that - as should always be the case - Liverpool will only green light deals for the right players, with the potential for three fresh first-team additions.
Official: Rabiot a free agent
Reported Liverpool transfer target Adrien Rabiot is now officially a FREE AGENT following the expiry of his Juventus contract.
The 29-year-old has paused all conversations about his future until after the European Championship according to ilBiancoNero, with his France side having qualified for the quarter-finals after beating Belgium in the last 16.
Rabiot won’t be playing in the quarter-finals having picked up a suspension with Didier Deschamps now having a decision to make over who replaces the midfielder for the Portugal showdown.
It emerged last week that Liverpool were considering an attempt for the former Paris Saint-Germain star, who has been with Juve since moving on a free transfer in 2019.
The Italian giants were reported to have been surprised that their attempts to renew Rabiot’s contract before Euro 2024 had gone unanswered by the player and his agent, mother Veronique.
Rabiot was offered a new two-year deal with an option for a third on an annual salary of €7 million but jetted off to Germany with his Les Bleus’ colleagues before replying to Juventus club bosses.
Kelleher U-turn
Liverpool and Arne Slot are planning to have an ‘A+’ player with them next season. That could change over the next few weeks, however.
The Athletic reports that as of right now, Arne Slot is preparing for the season with Caoimhin Kelleher on Liverpool’s books. The goalkeeper is heavily linked with a move away from Anfield.
Those links were always going to come but were forced to the forefront once Kelleher made it clear that he wants to be a no.1 goalkeeper. He’s been Alisson Becker’s backup thus far - a solid role but not one that offers much for growth.
If Alisson plays at the elite level until his late 30s, Kelleher could be into his 30s himself before finally getting the no.1 shirt. That’s not what he wants from his career.
Thus it’s expected that Liverpool will sell Kelleher this summer if the right bid comes in. The Athletic’s piece mentions a £25m price-tag or, essentially, an asking price of ‘offer us something too good to refuse for a backup goalkeeper’.
No one has offered that yet and as a result, Liverpool are planning to have Kelleher next season. That could all change in the next few weeks, of course.
Arne Slot will certainly be happy to have him. Alisson and Kelleher are an incredibly strong pair of goalkeepers, with Jurgen Klopp having labelled the latter ‘exceptional’ and ‘A+’ at times last season.
Midfielder departs after four years
Melkamu Frauendorf is leaving Liverpool this summer. He joined as a youth player in 2020 and struggled to progress beyond that - just two senior appearances to his name.
His contract has now expired and the German midfielder will join Hannover 96 on a free transfer. Frauendorf leaves on good terms with Liverpool, though, as shown in his goodbye message to the club.
The 20-year-old posted it on Instagram, thanking pretty much everyone involved with the Reds.
"As I am entering a new chapter in my career at Hannover 96 Football Club, today is the day to say goodbye and THANK YOU for the four wonderful years I spent at the Liverpool Academy,” he wrote.
"I could not have wished for better training conditions, and my special thank you goes out to my coaches, and to all my teammates.
"Thank you to all the staff, especially the kitchen staff, for absolutely delicious food, and thank you to my teachers who helped me succeed in the language classes.
"To all the fans who made it special to represent the Club at the matches: Thank you!
"The hardest part of leaving Liverpool was having to say goodbye to my host family, you certainly are more family than host parents to me, and I will miss the life with you and all the kids in the house. There is no way to thank you enough for everything you did for me.
"All the best to everyone."
£65M summer clearout
The Athletic reports that Liverpool hope to bring in around £65m when selling three non-starting players this summer. Of course, that depends on teams paying their asking prices.
Caoimhin Kelleher is the priciest of the trio. The Irishman has made no secret of his desire to be a no.1 goalkeeper going forward, something that isn’t going to happen at Liverpool unless Alisson Becker leaves.
The Reds are going to hold onto him until a big offer comes in, though. The asking price is at £25m but no team has put anything close to that on the table. Nottingham Forest did make a bid of around £15m back in January, but Liverpool rejected it.
Tyler Morton is another who could leave. Liverpool want £20m for him and RB Leipzig are interested in signing the midfielder after an impressive year on loan with Hull City.
There’s still a very good chance that Morton earns a place in Arne Slot’s plans this preseason but Liverpool are open to selling him for a big offer.
Sepp van den Berg is a very interesting one. Again, Liverpool want £20m but the Dutchman has been very firm on his desire to leave. Van den Berg even publicly claimed the Reds are jeopardising his career with a high asking price - he’s eager to leave for below that figure.
Calafiori boost
Il Bianco Nero reports that Bologna are currently dealing with the future of centre-back Riccardo Calafiori. It’s not a straightforward one, however.
Bologna want to keep him - Calafiori was one of the best defenders in Serie A last season, after all. His star turn with Italy at Euro 2024 has only strengthened their desire to hold onto the 22-year-old.
But Calafiori is generating a lot of interest from other clubs. It leaves Bologna knowing full well that he’ll be difficult to keep - even if they’re going to offer him a new contract.
And so they’re setting conditions. One of those is the new contract, another is that Calafiori will not join Juventus - the club to which he’s been linked with the most. Bologna will not sell to them and the defender cannot ask for the move.
In return, they’ll accept that offers from the Premier League will be too good to turn down. Something in the region of €50m (£42.5m) will almost certainly be accepted and certain English clubs are capable of putting it on the table.
Liverpool may well be one of them.
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