Liverpool must pay 4th-highest fee ever to hire Roberto De Zerbi

It would cost Liverpool the fourth-highest transfer fee for a manager in history to hire Roberto De Zerbi this summer. Whether the Reds want him is another matter.

The Telegraph reports that anyone wanting to hire Roberto De Zerbi this summer must pay Brighton 'upwards' of £12m. The wording there suggests it could go even higher, however.

Multiple clubs are eyeing the Italian in what promises to be a dramatic summer on the managerial front. Manchester United and Chelsea are both linked with De Zerbi, with Erik Ten Hag and Mauricio Pochettino both in danger of losing their jobs.

Liverpool, Bayern Munich and Barcelona are all certainly on the lookout for new managers, though. De Zerbi has been linked with the Reds ever since Jurgen Klopp announced he'd be stepping down.

And if they do ultimately decide he's the man for them, they'd be fronting £12m minimum. That would make De Zerbi the fourth most expensive manager in history, with only Julian Nagelsmann, Graham Potter and Andre Villas-Boas costing more over the years.

The latter two were both hires by Chelsea - and failed ones at that. On top of that, Potter was De Zerbi's predecessor at Brighton, having left the Seagulls for Chelsea in late 2022.

Roberto De Zerbi and Liverpool

It appears that De Zerbi isn't too high on Liverpool's list right now. Xabi Alonso and Ruben Amorim are the two names consistently linked with the Reds, and the Athletic reports that De Zerbi is 'unlikely' to make the final shortlist this summer.

But that doesn't entirely rule it out. After all, the competition this summer forces Liverpool to look at several options as it's entirely possible that both Alonso and Amorim decide to coach elsewhere next season.

Should they decide that, De Zerbi would shoot back onto the shortlist and he therefore remains a possible Liverpool manager for 2024/25.