Marc Guehi is very much a player in Liverpool’s sights during this transfer window, although Kopites have been advised to remain patient as far as this particular pursuit goes.
On Tuesday, Fabrizio Romano indicated that there’s set to be ‘contacts’ between the relevant parties in the coming days as the Reds attempt to land the Crystal Palace defender, who reportedly has no plans to extend a contract which is now into its final 12 months.
However, LFC-focused journalist David Lynch has issued a more cautious update, outlining that no formal negotiations have yet taken place and that the Anfield hierarchy may be waiting to see if a deal could viably be done before they throw themselves head-first into it.
What has Lynch said about Guehi and Liverpool?
Sharing his latest information on Guehi, the reporter told Sports Mole: “I think £50m is probably where Crystal Palace would want to pitch it and I think Liverpool will be much closer to £40m in terms of where they’ll approach things from, so I guess that’s where the negotiations will start.
“I’ve not had anything that this is definitely a concrete one. He’s definitely liked and he’s an option, but in terms of out-and-out negotiations ongoing right now I’m not entirely sure.
“I think they need a signal from Palace that there is a negotiation to be had and it’s not going to be a case where it drags on all summer as it did with Newcastle a couple of seasons ago. That just never went anywhere in the end.”
Liverpool are seemingly awaiting a 'signal' from Crystal Palace before launching a bid to sign Marc Guehi
(Photo by Alex Broadway/Getty Images)
Guehi’s contract situation could work in Liverpool’s favour
Guehi was indeed the subject of multiple bids from the St James’ Park outfit last summer, the largest of which was £65m (The Athletic), but the Eagles were not for turning.
However, now that the defender has only a year left on his contract and seemingly doesn’t wish to renew, that may yet force Palace’s hand if Liverpool were to come calling with an offer of their own in the coming weeks.
Now that the sale of Jarell Quansah to Bayer Leverkusen has been confirmed, the Reds could do with bolstering their centre-back options, and a top-up to the tune of £30m (plus a potential £5m more in add-ons) should enable LFC to meet the south Londoners’ price point for the 24-year-old.
As Lynch has suggested, Liverpool will likely go in with an offer below the Eagles’ reported valuation in the hope that the two clubs will ultimately meet somewhere in the middle and a deal will be struck.
At 24, homegrown and experienced in the Premier League, we’d be hard pressed to find a more suitable centre-back candidate than Guehi for the rest of this summer, so hopefully Richard Hughes will receive sufficient encouragement that this transfer could be a goer.
It might roll on until near the late August deadline, but the wait would be worth it if the defender is an LFC player in two months’ time.