Liverpool aim to offload seven of Jurgen Klopp’s fringe and youth players following the Anfield outfit’s double swoop for Thiago Alcantara and Diogo Jota, according to The Athletic.
The Premier League champions announced the completion of our second summer signing on Friday, with Thiago moving to Merseyside in a £27million deal from Bundesliga powerhouse Bayern Munich that will only set Klopp’s side back an initial £5m this year.
Wolverhampton Wanderers’ Jota is expected to swiftly follow the Spanish midfielder in securing a transfer to Anfield, with the forward due to hold his medical on Saturday ahead of finalising a potential £45m deal that features an initial £41m fee.
Our negotiations with Wolves over the future of Jota also included discussions over our rising defensive star Ki-Jana Hoever, who will move to Molineux in a £13.5m agreement that features £4.5m in add-ons along with a 15% sell-on clause.
But Hoever is not the only one the club aim to offload, as efforts are still being made to find new homes for Harry Wilson, Marko Grujic, Nat Phillips, Loris Karius and Yasser Larouci while Rhian Brewster may also find his time as a Liverpool player is over.
Reds chiefs are shopping the services of Wilson and Grujic – a rumoured target Borussia Monchengladbach – at around £20m, while reportedly setting a similar asking price for Brewster amid leading interest from Crystal Palace and Sheffield United.
The Eagles and Blades are both expected to step up their interest in the 20-year-old after Klopp agreed to sell him should we receive a suitable offer, though any deal is likely to include a buy-back clause.
Phillips has previously been suggested as a likely member of Klopp’s summer clear-out and of interest from Nottingham Forest, though no deal has yet been struck to offload the £720,000-rated centre-back who spent last term on loan with VfB Stuttgart.
Karius similarly spent last season away from Merseyside with the £2.88m-rated shot-stopper plying his trade for Besiktas, while £1.62m-rated Larouci did his bidding for Liverpool’s Under 19s and 23s.
How many of the £78.72m-rated septet leave Anfield over the coming weeks remains to be seen, but some – if not all – will need moving on following the completion of our £72m double swoop for Thiago and Jota.