As they close in on signing Florian Wirtz, Liverpool have also reportedly opened preliminary talks to sign an impressive La Liga winger who has a release clause worth £50m.
Florian Wirtz to Liverpool update
To say that Liverpool mean business would be quite an understatement. With their Premier League crown in hand, the Reds have not hesitated to flex their royal status in the transfer market, shocking Bayern Munich and Manchester City by stealing pole position to sign Wirtz this summer.
Jumping ahead of City to potentially land their dream Kevin De Bruyne replacement and leaving Bayern scrambling for options as they miss out on a Bundesliga star in a rare moment, Liverpool’s move to sign the Bayer Leverkusen star is likely to go down as the biggest of the summer.
The news that Wirtz only wants Liverpool will particularly be music to Michael Edwards’ ears. Despite being the most successful club in English football history, Liverpool haven’t always won the battle to sign Europe’s top stars, with the likes of Jude Bellingham joining Real Madrid and the Reds never really in the race to sign Manchester City’s Erling Haaland.
This summer, the notion that Liverpool can’t attract the top names seems to have shifted. By signing Wirtz, those at Anfield will be welcoming a Haaland-level addition rather than a player they need to mould into a star themselves. And that could make all the difference in their attempts to defend their Premier League crown next season.
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Liverpool are looking to finish their shopping nice and early this summer.
What’s more, even after Wirtz, Liverpool may not be done on the transfer front in the final third. Reports are now also suggesting that they’ve set their sights on an impressive La Liga winger.
Liverpool open preliminary talks to sign £50m Kubo
According to reports in Spain, Liverpool have now opened preliminary talks for Takefusa Kubo after Wirtz and could yet sign the Real Sociedad winger. Once again, however, any deal will not come cheap. The Japan international reportedly has a release clause worth as much as €60m (£50m), despite enduring a difficult season at Sociedad.
Whether Liverpool decide to trigger that release clause is the big question. After scoring seven goals and creating another five in the last campaign, many expected Kubo to push on and improve on those numbers this season. That didn’t prove to be the case, though, with the winger once again hitting seven goals and creating one fewer with four assists.
Football talent scout Jacek Kulig described Kubo’s start to the 2023/24 campaign as “fantastic” as he scored three goals in four games, but since then the 23-year-old has struggled to rediscover such clinical form.
If Liverpool are to replace Mohamed Salah when his contract comes to an end in two years, then they may need a player who is consistently involved in more than 12 goals a season.
