Curtis Jones has been linked with a move to Inter Milan this summer and former Liverpool striker Emile Heskey has named two midfield targets the Reds should consider if the England international leaves
Paul Gorst Liverpool FC correspondent
08:34, 21 Jun 2026
Curtis Jones has just one year remaining on his current Liverpool contract
Curtis Jones has just one year remaining on his current Liverpool contract(Image: Michael Regan/Getty Images)
Emile Heskey believes Inter's transfer interest in Curtis Jones stems from contract negotiations hitting a stumbling block behind closed doors at Liverpool.
The former Reds striker also believes that Bournemouth's Alex Scott or Crystal Palace's Adam Wharton would be perfect replacements should Jones make the move to the Serie A champions this summer.
Italian heavyweights Inter briefly approached Liverpool regarding Jones during the January transfer window, only to be rebuffed, with the Reds making clear they had no intention of selling. Despite Arne Slot revealing in February that discussions were ongoing with the Academy graduate's camp over fresh terms, speculation has continued to swirl.
Reports from Italy suggest that Liverpool and Inter remain some distance from reaching an agreement, and while Anfield's key decision-makers would prefer to retain Jones, talk of a $46M (£35m) fee has persisted.
Heskey, who netted 22 goals for Gerard Houllier's treble-winning squad 25 years ago, believes the ongoing transfer talk surrounding Jones is a direct result of the two parties failing to agree on a new deal, reports the Liverpool Echo.
"I'd be very surprised if he's not pushing for a new contract," Heskey told LiveFootballTickets. "So there's something there that tells me that they're not willing to offer him what he wants.
"They're either not willing to offer him a new contract or they're not willing to offer him what he wants in that contract. He's got ambitions to be a regular England player.
"So he needs to be playing regularly, and I think he can become a regular England player but he needs to be playing regularly at his club."
"I think if Liverpool can't give him that I think he then looks at other pastures. You look at Scott McTominay (at Napoli) who has gone on to play in Italy and he's been lauded for it.
"He's actually changed the way people look at him as a footballer, and I think Curtis has got the ability to do that. He's got so much ability to lead and he could play in several different positions.
"We've seen him play right back at times rolling into midfield which is not ideal for him, but he's shown that he's willing to do it and he's willing to try and he's capable of it."
Ex-Liverpool striker Emile Heskey
Ex-Liverpool striker Emile Heskey(Image: Nick Taylor/Liverpool FC, Liverpool FC via Getty Images)
Turning his attention to what Liverpool require in this summer's transfer window under Andoni Iraola, Heskey remarked: "I think midfield is a key place that they need to add to.
"I think another one of the most important places is centre-back. (Ibrahima) Konate is gone now, so there are two positions that they need straight away to get up and running.
"We all know that these sorts of things don't happen straight away, do they? There's so much intricacies to deals that can prolong them for a long time.
"So these things are not going to happen. We did it last year. We got a lot of our things over and done with so we could actually get the season up and running.
"It really didn't pan out the way that we wanted it to, but if we could do it again, it would be.
"I think I see Alex Scott being the one for midfield. Adam Wharton would be another good one. I know Elliot Anderson looks like he's going to Man City. He would have been another one.
Article continues below
"I think midfielders are the priority and then centre-back, someone to work alongside Virgil van Dijk who makes us solid again because we haven't been. We haven't been solid for a while."