Liverpool have agreed a pre-agreement to sign Rennes defender Jeremy Jacquet for an initial £55m in the summer, with Manchester United reportedly attempting to hijack the transfer on Sunday evening
Jeremy Jacquet
Jeremy Jacquet is closing on a move to Liverpool(Image: Getty Images)
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Manchester United reportedly made a last-ditch attempt to scupper Jeremy Jacquet's move to Liverpool. News broke late on Sunday evening that the Premier League champions had struck a deal with Rennes to secure the centre-back this summer.
Liverpool have arranged a pre-contract agreement valued at an initial £55million plus £5m in add-ons for the 20-year-old, following discussions with the French outfit over the weekend. Nevertheless, BILD journalist Florian Plettenberg reports that United attempted to derail the transfer on Sunday evening but failed, as the defender had already committed to Liverpool.
Chelsea had contacted Stade Rennais earlier this month regarding a potential deal for Jacquet, but the French club were hesitant to authorise a mid-season departure. This left Jacquet with a decision between Chelsea and Liverpool for a summer switch, and he chose the latter believing he would have better opportunities at Anfield.
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As part of the agreement between Liverpool and Rennes, the defender will spend the rest of the season in France before joining Arne Slot's men in the summer. He becomes the second central defender to move to Anfield from Europe after Giovanni Leoni signed from Parma for an initial £26m last year.
It's understood that Jacquet wants to stay at Rennes to help them seal European football. They currently sit sixth in Ligue 1 after 20 games, but have lost their last two games to Monaco and Lorient.
Slot indicated over the weekend that the club only wanted to strengthen the team before the window closed, rather than sell. Both Curtis Jones and Andrew Robertson have been linked with a move, but no deals have materialised.
Andrew Robertson and Curtis Jones
Andrew Robertson and Curtis Jones are both staying at Liverpool(Image: Getty Images)
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“I think there’s always a lot of talk about Liverpool and Liverpool players,” said the Reds boss. “There was a lot of noise around the club the last week or should I say weeks, but today our fans showed what noise really means. That is being loud, they were so helpful today, that is what noise here is in Liverpool.
“We are trying to strengthen the squad and not trying to weaken it. But yeah, 48-72 hours to go, let us see where the window ends up.”
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