Bournemouth is insistent that it will not sell midfielder Alex Scott this summer and has therefore reportedly set an astonishing asking price for the 23-year-old
Alex Scott of Bournemouth and Rico Lewis of Manchester City.
Alex Scott of Bournemouth and Rico Lewis of Manchester City.(Image: Robin Jones - AFC Bournemouth via Getty Images)
Bournemouth remains adamant that midfielder Alex Scott will not be leaving before the transfer deadline, with Chelsea already having seen an $87 million (£64 million) bid turned down.
Liverpool, according to The Independent, is also keen on Scott, and indeed views him as an ideal profile, but has no interest in paying the remarkable $122 million (£90 million) asking price. Chelsea could yet return with another offer before next week, especially if Enzo Fernandez ends up leaving amid interest from Manchester City.
Scott worked with Andoni Iraola at Bournemouth, while sporting director Richard Hughes signed him for the south coast side from Bristol City when he was plucked from the Championship.
Liverpool's priority in the immediate term is bringing in more quality in wide areas. Bradley Barcola is the number one transfer target, while Yankuba Minteh and Ismaila Sarr have also been considered.
Earlier in the summer, PSG's teenage attacker Ibrahim Mbaye was another who was looked at, though he was only ever one of a number of options under consideration.
"We will definitely sign some players," Iraola told Sky Sports last week. "Some deals you have to wait until the end. But the end is the important picture, the one we will have on September 1, because it is true that we are still quite thin."
Alex Scott of AFC Bournemouth looks on during the Premier League 2026/27 match between Manchester City and AFC Bournemouth
Alex Scott has been linked with a transfer to Liverpool and Chelsea this summer(Image: (Photo by James Gill - Danehouse/Getty Images))
Iraola was then asked about Liverpool's transfer plans during a press conference on Friday, ahead of the trip to Newcastle, which ended in a 2-2 draw.
"As a manager, it's an easy one for me," the Spaniard said. "I wanted the players from the first day on July 13, I wanted everyone here, all the positions doubled with top-level players.
"But you understand how the competition works and the market is open when you start the competition, we have to adapt as coaches to this situation.
"I hate these two weeks or 10 days that we have because there is a lot of uncertainty but not [just in Liverpool but everywhere.
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"But we have to adapt and not spend too much time thinking about these things. I know that you have lots of questions on the market but I am focused on the game against Newcastle.
"That is massive for me and using the very good players we have in the building in the best way so we can be competitive from the beginning."
Liverpool.com says: Replacing Curtis Jones would have been ideal, but the Reds simply have too much to get done in other areas. The attack is the priority, and there might not even be time for that, let alone anything else.