Liverpool ‘prepare offer’ for Bundesliga defender after Reds given £70m demand

Liverpool are preparing for their third game of the Premier League season as they take on Newcastle United at St James’ Park on Sunday afternoon.

The Reds started the campaign with a 1-1 draw against Chelsea before picking up their first win of the season with a 3-1 victory over Bournemouth at Anfield last weekend.

Liverpool have signed Alexis Mac Allister, Dominik Szoboslai and Wataru Endo so far this summer but it is unclear if the club will strengthen before the window closes on Friday, September 1.

The Reds have seen the likes of Jordan Henderson, Fabinho, Roberto Firmino, Naby Keita, James Milner and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain have departed while Fabio Carvalho, Calvin Ramsay and Rhys Williams have all gone on loan.

Below is the latest transfer news and rumours surrounding Liverpool, as the Reds are linked with one defender and have learned the asking price for one of their midfield targets.

Reds ‘prepare €45m offer’ for defender

Asked about his options at centre-back following an injury to Ibrahima Konaté, Reds boss Jurgen Klopp responded during his press conference on Friday: “In this room it is always like, ‘We could do this, we could do that, don’t you think we can do that...’ Maybe one day you sit a day in my chair and you have to deal with all the other stuff as well. In an ideal world we have six, seven, eight centre-halves and cover for absolutely everything.

“No, we need to be lucky with injuries, there is no doubt about that. I have no doubt about the quality of the boys we have. We have with Jarell Quansah, a super-talented player as well here available. So, in this moment we are covered but it is not dreamland where you can be prepared for absolutely each situation.

“We had to learn that in the past as well a couple of times. We will try to do our absolute best to have a squad for next week, a squad for us where we can react on pretty much everything. Is that possible? We will see.”

The Reds are said to be preparing a €45m offer for Bayer Leverkusen’s Ecuadorian centre-back Piero Hincapié. The 21-year-old joined the Bundesliga club in 2021.

That is according to reports from Ecuadorian newspaper El Telégrafo, while other reports say Leverkusen are seeking at least €70m to sanction a deal for the player this the window. The 21-year-old is under contract until 2027 in Germany and was linked with Tottenham Hotspur in January but a move never materialised.

Palace to demand £70m for Doucoure

Crystal Palace have put a minimum price tag of £70m on Liverpool midfield target Cheick Doucoure, per a report from the Evening Standard.

The Reds have been linked with a move for the defensive midfielder since missing out on deals for Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia. Palace are hopeful the £70m demand will be enough to fend off interest from Liverpool in the final week of the window.

The 23-year-old arrived at Selhurst Park on a five-year deal last summer and was named the club’s Player of the Year in his first season with the club.