Arsenal, Liverpool transfer battle takes fresh twist with new ‘worry’ in £50m move
A budding battle between Arsenal and Liverpool to sign Leicester ace Youri Tielemans next summer no longer looks straightforward.
The post Arsenal, Liverpool transfer battle takes fresh twist with new ‘worry’ in £50m move appeared first on TEAMtalk.
A budding battle between Arsenal and Liverpool to sign Leicester ace Youri Tielemans next summer no longer looks straightforward, claims a report.
The Belgian, 24, is already one of the Premier League’s most outstanding midfielders. Tielemans is the embodiment of a midfielder than can turn his hand to every aspect of the game. He has played an instrumental role in making Leicester a top four contender in recent seasons.
However, Tielemans is out of contract in the summer of 2023. With less than 18 months remaining on his deal, speculation has begun to swirl his Foxes career is reaching a crossroads.
If Leicester are unable to convince him to pen fresh terms, a summer sale may be inevitable. Indeed, valued by varying outlets around the £50m mark, Leicester would be unlikely to allow such a saleable asset to walk for free.
Arsenal have been earmarked as one potential suitor. They tried to add to their midfield ranks in January, most notably with Arthur Melo. However, their varying pursuits were all in vain, making a summer raid all the more important.
Liverpool, meanwhile, were noted by Football London to be eyeing a summer swoop.
Reds transfer guru Michael Edwards will depart his role on June 30, and Tielemans was reportedly being eyed as part of a blockbuster £118m swansong.
Tielemans hunt gets crowded
However, according to the Leicester Mercury, the English pair will not be alone in the hunt.
Citing Italian outlet Corriere Torino, it’s reported Juventus are now in the mix.
The Turin club are stated to have Tielemans ‘in their sights’. That will send shivers down the spines of many Arsenal fans after they were beaten to Dusan Vlahovic by Juve in January.
Also on their list is Ajax’s Ryan Gravenberch and Barcelona’s Frenkie De Jong. Nonetheless, if given an equal choice, common sense would dictate Leicester would prefer to sell Tielemans to an overseas club rather than strengthen a domestic rival.
Klopp sheds light on Luis Diaz debut timeline
Meanwhile, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has said that Luis Diaz needs time to adapt to his side before making his eagerly-awaited debut.
The Reds snapped the Colombian winger up from Porto late on in the January transfer window. The 25-year-old initially looked like he would be heading to Tottenham, but Liverpool then sprang into action.
Indeed, Klopp said immediately after Diaz signed that he was a target for the summer transfer window.
However, any hope of seeing Diaz feature in the FA Cup against Cardiff on Saturday has quickly been extinguished. Klopp has insisted that he is not willing to throw Diaz straight into his team straight away.
“If he would now come, step on the pitch and would immediately be at his absolute best and playing better than all of us, that would be really strange,” the manager told a press conference.
“We [Liverpool] worked together for a while so he needs time of course to adapt to it. But that doesn’t mean I don’t speak about four or five months.
“I haven’t even seen him yet, he’s not been in training – maybe we should wait a little bit!
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The post Arsenal, Liverpool transfer battle takes fresh twist with new ‘worry’ in £50m move appeared first on TEAMtalk.