Slot's first signing CONFIRMED, Alan Varela ENQUIRY, Kimmich REJECTS Barca - Liverpool FC news recap

All the latest Liverpool FC news for Tuesday, 28 May including updates on Arne Slot's backroom team, Luis Diaz, Alan Varela, Leny Yoro and Joshua Kimmich.

Slot's first signing confirmed

Arne Slot’s first backroom appointment at Liverpool has been confirmed, with Ruben Peeters joining as First Team Lead Physical Performance Coach. 

Peeters, 32, moves to Anfield from Feyenoord, where he worked as Head of Performance alongside the new Reds’ head coach. 

Slot’s move to Liverpool was announced last week following the conclusion of the Premier League season with a compensation deal of a reported €11 million worked out between the English club and Feyenoord for the coach and two members of his staff. 

Slot, Peeters and assistant Sipke Hulshoff will form the core of Liverpool’s new coaching setup as the club seeks to move beyond the Jurgen Klopp era. 

Peeters was previously Physical First Team Coach at Belgian side Genk, where he worked from 2017 to 2021. 

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Liverpool Diaz bid alert as PSG target six

PSG manager Luis Enrique has spoken about PSG’s desire to create something different with Kylian Mbappe departing and questions surrounding how the French champions intend to replace him. 

The former Barcelona manager predicted a full-scale transfer market assault, with up to SIX new arrivals who can take up the goalscoring burden. 

With space emerging on the left side of the PSG attack, one of those new faces could well be Luis Diaz.

"How will we replace Mbappe? Four, five, six signings... Whatever we can do,” the Spaniard told reporters. 

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Reds scout Leny Yoro

Liverpool have scouted highly-rated Lille defender Leny Yoro according to transfer expert Fabrizio Romano, but they will have to compete with Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain for his signature. 

The Reds are expected to make a new centre-back one of their priorities this summer, despite the emergence of the hugely impressive Jarell Quansah last season.

After all, Liverpool have seen Joel Matip leave the club on a free transfer this summer, Virgil van Dijk will be 33 by the start of the new campaign and Ibrahima Konate has proven to be worryingly injury prone.

Therefore, it would make sense if one of Arne Slot's first acquisitions in the Anfield dugout were a centre-back, with talented 18-year-old Yoro being linked with a potential move to Merseyside after a breakout campaign at Lille.

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Battle with Bayern for Varela

Liverpool and Bayern Munich have now both enquired about signing the Porto midfielder Alan Varela, according to a new report in Argentina. 

Porto finished third in the Portuguese Primeira Liga, meaning there will be no Champions League football for the club next season. 

That means there could be an opportunity for interested parties to pick up some of Porto’s most bankable assets as the club seeks to make up a budgetary shortfall. 

Varela has a reported €70 million release clause in his contract, meaning Liverpool and Bayern could have the chance to skip negotiations, but the report stating that both clubs have made enquiries suggests they are likely to try to pay less. 

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Kimmich knocks back Barca

Joshua Kimmich’s Bayern Munich contract expires in 2025 and it’s been reported that the German international could well be SOLD this summer. 

Liverpool and Barcelona have both been linked but the latest reports out of Catalonia are NOT positive from a Barca standpoint. 

Sport details that Kimmich has knocked back their opening salary offer, deeming it a long way short of his expectation. 

It’s no secret that Barca are struggling to balance the books, especially with a substantial €30m salary outlay going on Robert Lewandowski and requiring compliance with LaLiga’s strict financial fair play laws. 

It remains to be seen whether a compromise can be reached between the two parties and, if not, the ball could well end up in Liverpool’s court. 

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New Szoboszlai role

Liverpool star Dominik Szoboszlai will play an interesting role at Euro 204 this summer. It’s one that will have Arne Slot watching closely.

Hungary boss Marco Rossi talked about his side's style of play this week, ahead of their Euro 2024 campaign. It's a campaign that will be led by captain Dominik Szoboszlai, of course.

Szoboszlai signed for Liverpool last summer - £60m made that happen - and started incredibly brightly for the Reds. However, his season petered out and he struggled to impact games by the end.

In fact, Jurgen Klopp eventually left him out of the starting XI with some consistency. That didn't feel possible in late 2023.

The hope for Hungary will be that Szoboszlai simply got extra rest. They'll also hope, however, that a different role for the 23-year-old helps him recover his best form.

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