Liverpool have now asked a Premier League rival about £40m teenager Arne Slot loves

Liverpool have been in touch with a Premier League rival over a player Arne Slot loves. The Reds may have to pay £40m.

This comes from the Telegraph. They claim that Newcastle United may need to sell Yankuba Minteh this summer as they attempt to hold onto their key stars.

The Magpies must raise some cash this summer - and they'd rather that didn't mean selling Bruno Guimaraes or Alexander Isak. Minteh is a player they've never actually used, which is a much more palatable sale.

And Liverpool are apparently one of the clubs interested in signing Minteh. It's one that makes sense - Minteh spent the last year on loan at Feyenoord, playing regularly under Arne Slot.

He thrived, too. Minteh averaged around a goal or assist for every 90 minutes he played in the Eredivisie (0.93, if you want to be exact) and helped Feyenoord to a second-place finish and the KNVB Cup.

It shouldn't be a surprise, then, that Slot is interested in linking back up with the right-sided winger. Whether Liverpool can justify the asking price, however, is another matter.

Liverpool like Yankuba Minteh

Minteh's stats (per Fbref) from last season are pretty ridiculous for a 19-year-old playing his first full senior season. Especially in a team that had set such high standards the previous year.

Among wingers playing outside the top-five European leagues, Minteh is 99th percentile for non-penalty goals, expected goals + expected assists, progressive carries, taken-ons, progressive passes, and touches in the opposition box for wingers and attacking midfielders. Essentially, he's an incredibly exciting winger who wants to run at players and get in the box.

The downside is that his passing numbers are woeful. His 63% pass completion puts him in the bottom five per cent of wingers at his level, while he only attempts around 30 per game.

Liverpool would need to decide whether his upside is worth overlooking that - and spending £40m on. If Slot is a big fan and the Reds' interest certainly suggests he is, then perhaps Minteh is worth the risk.

But he's certainly a work in progress.