Liverpool now ‘out of the race’ to sign midfielder despite holding talks with player’s agents

Having already signed Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai from Brighton and RB Leipzig respectively, Liverpool aren’t done with the bolstering of their midfield.

While names such as Roméo Lavia and Khephren Thuram are being linked repeatedly with a move to Anfield and could very well end up there, one man will not.

That’s according to Sky Germany’s Florian Plettenberg, who took to Twitter to reveal the latest in Liverpool’s hunt for reinforcements on the transfer market.

He claims that the Reds are ‘out of the race’ when it comes to Ryan Gravenberch, and that’s despite the Premier League side holding talks with the ‘player’s management’ regarding a potential transfer.

As things stand, the German journalist states the priority at Liverpool is a move for Roméo Lavia, who is currently contracted to Southampton and wants a way out after their relegation to the Championship.

One other detail that Plettenberg was keen to add is that while Jürgen Klopp will not be going after the Bayern Munich midfielder, the player is ‘not unsellable’ at the Bundesliga side, meaning the door is open for other clubs to try their luck.

Liverpool have made a second offer for Real Madrid midfielder Federico Valverde after having a £69m bid turned down, according to reports in Spain.

The Reds are looking to bring in one more midfielder this summer after sealing a bargain £35m deal for Alexis Mac Allister from Brighton and a transfer for Hungary international Dominik Szoboszlai.

Jutgen Klopp’s midfield were blamed for a number of their issues last season as Liverpool failed to qualify for the Champions League or win a major trophy.

And a number of players have been linked with Nice’s Khephren Thuram and Southampton’s Romeo Lavia understood to be near the top of their list.

Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano brought an update on their attempts to sign the duo after securing deals for Szoboszlai and Mac Allister.

Romano wrote in his Caught Offside column: “Liverpool are now in the race for Lavia, they are working on the deal and are having direct contacts on both the player and club side. The original plan this summer was always to sign three new midfielders after Oxlade-Chamberlain, Naby Keita and James Milner left.

READ MORE: Szoboszlai next: Liverpool signings from Bundesliga ranked with obvious no.1…

“Let’s see how much they can invest on the final one after already bringing in Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai. Lavia is on their list for sure, and Khephren Thuram remains on the list too.

“Now after Szoboszlai they will take their time to decide on the midfielder situation. They could also strengthen in defence at some point this summer, keep an eye on that because that’s also something they want to do.”

But Spanish publication Nacional are still insisting that Real Madrid midfielder Valverde is on Klopp’s wishlist with Liverpool having an €80m (£69m) opening offer rejected.

They say the German is refusing to ‘give up’ on the Uruguay international and Liverpool are now ‘back’ with an offer of €90m (£77m) for the midfielder.

Valverde has been pushed down the pecking order at the Bernabeu with the arrivals of Jude Bellingham and Brahim Diaz, and Liverpool ‘want to take advantage’.

Nacional describe Valverde as the ‘icing on the cake’ for the Reds this summer and Klopp ‘believes that he would fit perfectly into Liverpool’s style of play’.

£77m already sounds like a lot of money for Liverpool, especially after only recently buying Mac Allister and Szoboszlai – but the report insists that they would have ‘no problem offering even more money’ if Real Madrid turn down their latest bid.

There have been rumours that former Barcelona midfielder Thiago Alcantara could leave Anfield this summer but former Goal and Liverpool Echo journalist Neil Jones says there are currently no offers for the Spaniard.

Jones wrote on Twitter: “No offers received at this stage, but Liverpool could soon find themselves with a decision to make over Thiago Alcântara, with Fenerbahçe among the clubs keen on signing the midfielder.”