Liverpool FC look to continue their busy summer as they quickly look to fill the void by the departing Jarell Quansah. The young center back is set to have his medical at Bayer Leverkusen on Monday. His departure opens up a need for depth behind incumbents Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konaté.
Marc Guéhi has been linked with the Reds periodically over the last year, and the chatter has intensified over the past month. Guéhi only has a year left on his contract with Crystal Palace, meaning the club may be looking to cash in on the England international this summer rather than let him go on a free next summer.
Andy Dunn of the Mirror has reported that Liverpool are moving forward quickly to get a deal done for Guéhi. Dunn believes talks are taking place between the clubs and the player Sunday, with a price of £40 million proffered by Liverpool and a 5 year deal extended to Guéhi. Ben Jacobs of Talksport is saying that Crystal Palace are holding out for a fee between £45-50 million. Chelsea have a 20% sell-on fee for Guéhi, so the structure of the deal may be a sticking point as well as Crystal Palace look to maximize their potential profit. Jacobs also says that Richard Hughes and the Liverpool recruitment staff are also looking at younger center backs like Jorrel Hato of Ajax.
Signing Guéhi would not only provide immediate depth, it would also hedge against a potential departure of Ibrahima Konaté. The French defender is in the last year of his contract with Liverpool and reportedly turned down an initial contract extension offer. Konaté is said to be looking for a higher base wage after serving as an anchor alongside Virgil van Dijk the last two seasons. Guéhi does not provide the same physical presence or aerial ability of Konaté, but is considered an elite ball progressor from the back and has plenty of top flight experience despite being just 24 years old.