Liverpool transfer news: Why Reds ultimately REJECTED chance to sign Leny Yoro

A report has explained why Liverpool opted not to move for Leny Yoro in the end. He’s a player they very much wanted.

It’s no secret that Liverpool wanted to sign Leny Yoro this summer. They were one of four clubs strongly linked with the teenager this year, along with Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester United.

And it was Real Madrid that ruined everything. Such was the player’s desire to move to Real Madrid, Liverpool decided the transfer race wasn’t worth it. Yoro wanted to play there and with one year left on his Lille contract, he was willing to wait for the move in 2025.

Essentially, anyone but Real getting him was impossible.

At least, that’s how things looked. As it turns out, Yoro isn’t going to Madrid - he’s off to Manchester. United are on the brink of signing the teenager in a £52m deal. Journalist Santi Aouna claims he’ll earn around £145k per week.

And according to the Liverpool Echo, those numbers are ultimately why Liverpool decided to pass on Yoro.

Liverpool say no to Leny Yoro

The report suggests Liverpool just couldn’t justify the numbers. After all, the only way to sign Yoro this summer were to pay Lille more than they’d get by having him in their team this season and pay the player so much that he’d be turned away from Real Madrid.

All in all, it’s a ton of cash for an 18-year-old out of Ligue 1. Yoro is a massive talent and one who could well go on to become one of the world’s very best. Maybe the outright best centre-back.

But it’s far from a sure thing and Liverpool didn’t think the money involved was worth that gamble. You only need to look at another centre-back available this summer, Matthijs de Ligt, to see a centre-back who looked destined to be the world’s best that didn’t quite make it.

United were willing to take that chance. Liverpool weren’t. That’s what it came down to and time will tell who was right.