Liverpool have reportedly accelerated their efforts to beat Manchester United in the race to sign Eintracht Frankfurt striker Hugo Ekitike, as per Fichajes.
Following Diogo Jota’s tragic passing, the Reds have been left with Darwin Núñez as the only specialist centre-forward option. However, he struggled to find regular game time under Arne Slot last term, so the Dutch boss is open to cashing-in on him.
Napoli have expressed their interest in the Uruguayan and have been in talks with the Merseyside club over this deal after persuading the player to join.
Luis Diaz played many games in the centre-forward position last term, although he is a left winger by trait. He has been linked with a move away this summer, with Bayern Munich and Barcelona showing keen interest in him, but Liverpool have no intention of parting ways with him.
Now, Fichajes state that Liverpool are willing to strengthen the No.9 position this summer and are prioritising signing Ekitike. However, purchasing him won’t be straightforward as Frankfurt have slapped a £86m price tag on his head.
Moreover, Chelsea and Man Utd are also showing a strong interest in him. But Slot’s side are ‘fully confident’ that their project of fighting for the biggest prizes consistently will be decisive in convincing the player to join by beating the competition in this race.
Ekitike to Liverpool
After struggling to find regular game time at PSG, the Frenchman moved to Deutsche Bank Park on a loan deal in January last year before signing permanently last summer.
He has placed himself on the radar of several big Premier League clubs, having enjoyed a productive campaign last term, scoring 24 goals and registering 12 assists in all competitions.
Chelsea are surprisingly looking for a new striker despite already purchasing João Pedro and Liam Delap this summer. On the other hand, Man Utd want a new No.9 as a potential replacement for Rasmus Hojlund, who is reportedly on the chopping block, having displayed disappointing performances last term.
Ekitike is one of the best young strikers in the world and could be a great coup for Liverpool, Chelsea, or Man Utd should any of those clubs eventually manage to secure his service in this transfer window.