£62m KOP KEEPER
Liverpool’s record swoop for Alisson
LIVERPOOL have made a world record £62million bid for Roma’s No 1 Alisson in an attempt to end their goalkeeping troubles.
Brazilian international Alisson has long been the man Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp wants to replace Loris Karius.
Chelsea also covet him but Liverpool have moved first. The bid, according to sources in Italy, is £53m with a subsequent £9m in add-ons.
Liverpool have a good relationship with AS Roma and registered their interest in the player in January. Their offer has dwarfed the current record for a No 1, which was set when Manchester City landed £35m Ederson — the 25-year-old’s compatriot — from Benfica last summer.
However, even £62m is unlikely to convince Roma’s canny sporting director Monchi to sell.
Roma faced a financial squeeze earlier this summer, following their punishment for breach of financial fair play rules in 2015, but this was eased when they sold Radja Nainggolan to Inter Milan in June.
Yet Klopp is desperate to replace Karius, who made two key mistakes in the Champions League final defeat by Real Madrid in May.
The German keeper has also made a poor start to the Anfield club’s pre-season programme of fixtures.
RAFAEL BENITEZ admits he will have to ‘wheel and deal’ this summer if he is to get the men he wants to rebuild Newcastle. The 59-year-old Spaniard has endured a frustrating summer to date. Asked at the club’s preseason training camp at Carton House in Ireland if he will have to sell before he can buy, Benitez said: ‘Yeah, maybe. I think it’s normal for us now to be like that. Unfortunately we wheel and deal, it’s the way for us.’ To date, they have added Sparta Prague keeper Martin Dubravka, who has made his loan move permanent, Chelsea’s Kenedy on another season-long loan and Swansea midfielder Ki Sung-yueng on a free. Benitez (left), with about £40-£50million to spend, said: ‘As soon as the price goes high, I know we can’t buy. We have to maybe sell some players and then buy.’ Salomon Rondon is a loan target, but West Brom say Newcastle must activate a £16.5m buy-out clause.