JUST IN – Ange Postecoglou’s Secret Admission Could Bring Liverpool Millions!
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Discussions about Arne Slot’s maiden summer transfer summer will have already started.
Liverpool’s new head coach undoubtedly is bound to have an idea of where he squad needs strengthening. Jurgen Klopp has likely given his recommendations to Michael Edwards and Richard Hughes of the positions that require bolstering. Edwards, FSG’s CEO of football, and incoming sporting director Hughes will have already started the process.
That’s not to say there will be wholesale changes to the Reds’ squad. Just because there is a change in the hot seat doesn’t mean there will be a shift in policy. Liverpool will make tweaks where they deem required. A centre-back will be high on the priority list. A defensive midfielder perhaps may also be an area looked at.
FSG are said to be prepared to back Slot in the market. But it won’t be a blank chequebook. That was a luxury Klopp was never afforded and Slot will receive the same treatment. Liverpool are run in a self-sustainable manner and spending within their means is paramount. However, Slot could get a welcome boost to his kitty if one transfer away from Merseyside happens.
It was more than five years ago when Dominic Solanke left Liverpool to join AFC Bournemouth. The striker was a peripheral figure at Anfield, scoring only one goal in 27 appearances. Yet Liverpool banked a reported fee of £24 million for his departed in January 2019. It’s why Edwards was much-vaunted while in his role as sporting director.
To his credit, Solanke has now fulfilled his early potential that saw Liverpool sign him from Chelsea for a compensation fee. In the 2021-22 season, he plundered 30 goals to help Bournemouth earn promotion back to the Premier League. And after bagging seven times last term, he enjoyed a magnificent 2023-24 campaign. Solanke scored 21 goals – with 19 in the top flight. Only Erling Haaland (27), Cole Palmer (22) and Alexander Isak (21) netted more.
As a result, Solanke has been linked with a move away from Bournemouth this summer. West Ham United have previously been suggested as potential suitors. However, reports have claimed that Tottenham Hotspur are admirers of the 27-year-old. According to talkSPORT, it would take a ‘hefty bid’ for the Cherries to sell Solanke, who is under contract until 2027.
Should the one-cap England international be sold by the south-coast club, Liverpool would be entitled to a slice of the fee. The Reds installed a sell-on clause of 20% when he departed Anfield. It means that Liverpool will land one-fifth of any profit that Bournemouth make on Solanke.
Postecoglou has admitted that he wanted to bolster Tottenham’s attacking options this summer after they finished fifth in his maiden season in charge. Speaking after Spurs’ post-match friendly against Newcastle in Australia, he said: “It’s no secret. You saw the way we finished the season. We obviously lost Richy [Richarlison] and Timo [Werner] as well with injuries but we’re fairly light in that area.
“We started last season with Manor [Solomon] and [Ivan] Perisic and we were quite healthy in that front third in terms of numbers, but as the year went on it became pretty evident that we need to bulk up. We’re in Europe as well next year so we’ll have more games and it’s definitely an area of the park we’ll need to strengthen.”
Solanke’s feats are a chief reason why Bournemouth finished 12th in the Premier League. Now the centre-forward is likely to be in demand – and Liverpool will keep a close watch.
