Liverpool is expected to be busy in the summer transfer market, and has already snapped up Jeremie Frimpong. Bayer Leverkusen's Florian Wirtz and Bournemouth's Milos Kerkez could be next on the hitlist.
But it won't just be the Reds who go big in the market this summer. Manchester City and Arsenal are among those hoping to take the next step and catch up next season, while Chelsea — inevitably — has more cash to splash.
Heading to the Club World Cup as the Champions League winner in 2021, Chelsea made the top five spots in the Premier League table and has freed up some space to work in as a result. And Jamie Gittens could be the next name on its list.
According to The Telegraph, Chelsea has opened talks with Borussia Dortmund for the transfer of Gittens, with a deal likely to cost around $68 million (£59 million). It hopes to conclude the move before the Club World Cup begins.
The 20-year-old was born in Reading. As a child, he spent time in the Chelsea and Manchester City youth set-ups before moving to Dortmund in 2020, treading the same path as Jadon Sancho.
He made his senior debut for the German club two years later, and has already racked up over 100 appearances in all competitions. This year, he scored 12 goals in 48 appearances, making it Gittens' most prolific campaign to date.
Jamie Gittens of Borussia Dortmund has been with Liverpool
Jamie Gittens of Borussia Dortmund has been with Liverpool (Image: Ralf Ibing - firo sportphoto/Getty Images)
Gittens, however, though he has been linked with Liverpool at times, would certainly not represent the kind of deal that the Reds would be likely to do. He is relatively expensive for a player of his limited experience at the top level, and he doesn't have a track record of scoring and creating regularly.
Liverpool will end up spending considerably more than $68 million on Florian Wirtz — around double, in fact — but Chelsea has spent way more than that on unfinished products with limited success.
It is more efficient to drop a huge sum on someone like Wirtz — who scored 16 goals and set up another 15 last season and has experience of winning titles and playing regularly in the Champions League — than on a string of players with potential.
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Gittens would join the likes of Sancho, Noni Madueke and Pedro Neto in moving to Chelsea, and none has become world-class yet. The hope is that they take the next step in West London, but there is no guarantee of that happening, with the financial risk significant.
In recent times, Liverpool has tended to go big on players that it thinks can really make a substantial difference, or avoid making any big outlays at all. No doubt, the fact that Federico Chiesa was the only signing in Arne Slot's first summer has freed up the room to spend as much as it might a year on.
Chelsea has spent billions on transfers and has begun to see some success. But while Wirtz is likely to break the British transfer record this summer, Liverpool still has a very different strategy.
The Stamford Bridge side's pursuit of Gittens is a good example of both how and why.