Now that Liverpool FC seem to be finally on the verge of bringing the deals for Florian Writz and Milos Kerkez, they appear to be moving on to address the striker position in the squad.
We start first with striker Darwin Nunez, who has been rumoured to leave since a failed Saudi bid in January.
Darwin Nunez remains guaranteed exit at Liverpool this summer with Saudi Pro League clubs keen since January.
Understand also Napoli have made contact in the recent days with Nunez on the shortlist and more talks to follow soon.
Darwin, open to both Saudi-European options. pic.twitter.com/jT0O3gF0iu
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) June 12, 2025
Napoli are said to have thrown their hat into the ring for Darwin, and with previous reports having said that he would prefer to stay in Europe, perhaps Nunez will be the next player to follow in Scott McTominay’s footsteps and learn about the joy of Neapolitan tomatoes.
We move on from a possible departure to a potential incoming in Eintracht Frankfurt’s Hugo Ekitike.
EXCL | Manchester United have now officially entered the race for Hugo #Ekitike#MUFC made contact with Eintracht Frankfurt within the last 48 hours, expressed concrete interest, and gathered all relevant information.
Liverpool and Chelsea remain in the race – and now Man… pic.twitter.com/41PrOq0678
— Florian Plettenberg (@Plettigoal) June 12, 2025
Hahahahaha. Good one!
Meanwhile, journalist Ben Jacobs, speaking on Chelsea fan channel Kings of the Bridge channel on Playback, appears to corroborate what I’ve suspected all along that Chelsea aren’t leading the race for the French striker:
“Chelsea do hold an interest in Hugo Ekitike but think it’s Liverpool who are really there, Chelsea were never as advanced as people said.”
Despite Chelsea appearing to initiate talks with Frankfurt and the player over the last week or so, it appears that they haven’t been able to make any progress on signing the player. Plus, with Liam Delap now in the fold, and with Nicolas Jackson still there, it’s a lot of competition for places.
Plus, Chelsea’s tactical setup, with its possession-heavy style and focus on deep build-up appears to be a bad fit for Ekitike. On the other hand, it’s rather easy to see how Arne Slot’s Liverpool, with their focus on setting traps and producing controlled transitions, would enable Ekitike to thrive.
I suspect the player already knows all of this, hence why the lack of movement on Chelsea’s end. It appears he’s holding out for Liverpool, and we’ll see if the club makes moves after concluding the Wirtz and Kerkez deals.