Liverpool transfers: Reds' last-ditch effort to CONVINCE Pacho before PSG deal

The transfer hierarchy at Liverpool attempted to scupper a massive European rival but their mammoth offer supposedly came too late to change anything.

It’s been well-documented exactly which positions the Reds have been after this summer, the ongoing saga of extracting Martin Zubimendi from Real Sociedad has proven that a new holding midfielder is top of the list for Arne Slot and Richard Hughes, but we also know that acquiring another centre-back is very much something they’re interested in.

Almost every promising young centre-back in Europe has been linked with a move to Merseyside, from eventual Manchester United player Leny Yoro to some slightly less high-profile names in Maxence Lacroix and Antonio Silva.

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One target which garnered several headlines was Ecuadorian star defender Willian Pacho, who recently completed a reported €45 million transfer to French powerhouse Paris Saint-Germain. 

Attempts to extract the 22 year-old from Eintracht Frankfurt had been well-documented, with PSG, RB Leipzig and Liverpool all in the frame from early on this year. Eventually PSG won out in this battle, and one might think it was due to their considerable financial strength, but that doesn’t tell the whole story.

According to a report in French outlet Le10sport, when Liverpool learned that PSG and Eintracht had reached an agreement, the Reds offered the German club an even higher fee than the already considerable sum from the French champions. Alas, Frankfurt informed Liverpool that they had already given PSG their word and their offer was sadly too late. 

Whilst undoubtedly disappointing that the Reds couldn’t bring Pacho to Anfield, it should come as some comfort that FSG are willing to sanction a fee greater than €45m in pursuit of a new centre-back, and presumably all that the new transfer committee are waiting for is finding a suitable target to refocus their efforts on.