Liverpool have already broken their transfer record once this summer with the £39m arrival of Mohamed Salah from Roma but there’s a good chance that record could be broken twice more before the window closes.
Jurgen Klopp is eager to add a top quality defender and midfielder to his ranks this summer and Southampton’s Virgil van Dijk and Red Bull Leipzig’s Naby Keita are certainly the club’s top targets respectively.
With the tapping up debacle now behind them, Liverpool are back in talks to sign the Dutchman from Southampton but any deal will likely make van Dijk the most expensive defender in football history.
It appears that despite interest from Chelsea and Manchester City, van Dijk has his heart set on joining Liverpool this summer to work under Klopp having fully bought into the project in place at Anfield. The Reds are the favourites to land the former Celtic standout this summer and you can back the deal to happen and receive a tasty deposit bonus here with NetBet.
This issue remains agreeing a deal with Southampton who really do not want to deal with Liverpool following their antics earlier this summer and how they’ve repeatedly managed to prise away the best talents the south coast club have to offer.
Adam Lallana, Dejan Lovren and Nathaniel Clyne have all made the move to Merseyside in recent summers from St. Mary’s, becoming key members of the Liverpool first-team squad in the process.
Van Dijk is regarded as one of the best footballing centre-backs in Europe today, drawing comparisons to former Manchester United and England star Rio Ferdinand for the way he uses the ball, along with his unrivalled athleticism at the position.
In the case of Keita, Leipzig are also desperate to keep hold of the impressive 22-year-old following a stunning debut season in the Bundesliga, with his eight goals and eight assists in 31 Bundesliga appearances last season helping fire Leipzig to second in the German top-flight, earning a place in next season’s Champions League in the process.
Bayern Munich have also been linked with Keita, but Liverpool are showing the most intent to sign him and want to strike a £70m deal this summer despite Leipzig’s best wishes to keep the former Salzburg star.
Both Keita and van Dijk want a move to Liverpool this summer but they could cost over a combined £130m. Are Liverpool ready to meet the asking prices and bring both in? Without players departing Anfield as well, it may be a case of bringing just one of these stars in and biding their time on the other.
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