Yan Diomande has chosen his next club – and that’s bad news for Liverpool supporters.
The summer transfer window for Premier League clubs is officially open, and several clubs have already been in action. Among the most active so far is Liverpool, who surprised many with the signing of Spanish Victor Munoz – after triggering the Osasuna winger’s €40 million release clause.
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Since then, Liverpool have continued their search for another striker, and RB Leipzig’s Diomande has been the big target. An initial bid of €100 million was rejected by the Germans, and Liverpool prepared a new bid for the winger – who was reportedly eager to come to Anfield.
But now that hope seems to be dashed.
According to David Ornstein, the 19-year-old has chosen Paris Saint-Germain as his next destination if he leaves RB Leipzig this summer. Diomande is said to have been convinced by the project led by PSG president Nasser Al-Khelaifi and football advisor Luís Campos – and he wants to play under Luis Enrique.
In addition, the youngster wants to fight for trophies regularly and later win the Ballon d’Or – and he believes he has a better chance of doing so in Paris.
Now Diomande’s team will push for the transfer to PSG to be completed in the next few weeks.
Who can Liverpool bring in instead?
According to Ben Jacobs, Liverpool have not yet received direct notice from Diomande or his team that he does not want to come – and the club have reportedly made good progress on the deal on the player side.
But sources close to the winger make it clear that he wants to play under Enrique.
If Liverpool loses their main goal, the club has a shortlist with several options:
- Bradley Barcola is at the top of the list. The Frenchman has recently been linked with a move away from PSG, and the arrival of Diomande could open the door to a sale. Arsenal are also interested.
- Saïd El Mala (FC Köln)
- Matías Fernández-Pardo (Lille)
- Yankuba Minteh (Brighton)
It remains to be seen if any of these chases come to fruition – but Liverpool will need to act quickly to make up for lost goals.
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