An agent has confirmed Liverpool have discussed the potential signing of his client in a new move, but Jorg Schmadtke could get the Reds to go after a different target, Barcelona are eyeing a second swoop on Manchester City after Ilkay Gundogan, while Saturday’s Transfer Gossip claims Fulham hope to land a midfielder before West Ham.
TWO LIVERPOOL MIDFIELD TARGETS EMERGE
There have already been plenty of changes to Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool midfield this summer and that trend looks set to continue, with the Merseyside giants backed to sign two new players in the position
Liverpool got rid of some of the dead wood in the squad by allowing James Milner, Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain to leave Anfield on free transfers. And they begun the process of revamping their midfield by snaring Alexis Mac Allister from Brighton and signing RB Leipzig star Dominik Szoboszlai.
But it seems more players could leave Liverpool ahead of next season, with Steven Gerrard hoping to take Reds captain Jordan Henderson to Saudi Arabian club Al Ettifaq. And Henderson could come up against Fabinho in the Middle East, as Al Ittihad are preparing a £40million offer for the Brazilian.
Liverpool have been pursuing Southampton star Romeo Lavia as a potential signing to provide competition and backup for Fabinho, but they may now have to accelerate those plans if the latter leaves.
The only trouble for Klopp is that Arsenal and Chelsea are also interested in Lavia, making it a tough transfer for Liverpool to complete.
One alternative to Lavia is 19-year-old Senegalese midfielder Pape Demba Diop, who currently represents Zulte Waregem in the Belgian second tier. During a recent interview with Tutto Mercato (via Liverpool Echo), Diop’s representative Gerald Sagoe confirmed Liverpool have been in touch. Although, Diop is wanted by several top European clubs too.
“Yes, towards the end of last season while he was busy with the national team, we were contacted by Liverpool and we had preliminary meetings in Paris,” Sagoe said.
“Three French teams have expressed interest and some Italian teams, including Napoli, have expressed interest. Together with my lawyer, Alessandro Mazzucato, we will have some appointments in Germany in the next few weeks. Let’s see what happens
Senegal and France midfielders on Liverpool radar
Sagoe added that he is looking for ‘the right project’ for Diop so the player can continue his exciting development and emerge into a top midfielder.
But given Diop’s tender age, and the fact he lacks experience in a major league, the Senegal U23 international may not actually be the right solution for Liverpool. Instead, they could reignite their interest in Borussia Monchengladbach enforcer Kouadio Kone, alternatively known as Manu Kone.
During an interview with CaughtOffside, German journalist Christian Falk has revealed Liverpool sporting director Jorg Schmadtke ‘has an eye’ on Kone, 22
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