Liverpool back ‘in the running’ for former transfer target as Napoli seek to offload £36m attacker

The FIFA World Cup finals have reached the semi-final stage and one of France, Argentina, Croatia or Morocco will have lifted the trophy by this time next week.

With the Qatar tournament coming to an end the return of domestic football is getting closer as Liverpool prepare to face Manchester City in the EFL Cup on December 22. That will be the first of three matches that Jurgen Klopp’s side have before the January transfer window opens.

Borussia Dortmund and England midfielder Jude Bellingham, probably the Three Lions’ standout player from the Qatar finals, is widely reported as the top target for the Reds in 2023 with reinforcing the midfield thought to be a priority. One area where the Merseyside club aren’t lacking for depth is in attack where they have plenty of options in both the centre forward and wide attacking areas.

That hasn’t stopped them being linked with another attacker and a report from The Mirror, referencing news from Italian publication Gazzetta dello Sport, suggests they could reignite a previous interest in Napoli’s Hirving Lozano. The Mexican star, who featured at the World Cup, was previously thought to be a target for the Reds but no move ever materialised.

Now, it is reported that Napoli want to offload the 27-year old in the next transfer window as they are not willing to renew his contract due to the player’s ‘huge’ wage demands. It is also reported that the Italian club will be looking to recoup as much of the £36 million they paid PSV Eindhoven in 2019 for the player.

Lozano has been a regular for the Serie A club since his arrival in Naples, playing 133 times in three and a half seasons and netting 30 goals in all competitions. The Mexico City native has earned 63 caps for his country and scored 16 goals, featuring in all three of their 2022 FIFA World Cup group stage fixtures. He has also picked up league winners medals with first club Pachuca where he lifted the Liga MX in 2016 and with PSV where he was a part of the 2018 Eredivisie winning side.