Belgian journalist Sacha Tavolieri has dropped a hint at how much Liverpool could potentially offer in a prospective ‘first bid’ for Romeo Lavia.
The reporter claimed on Twitter on Tuesday morning that the Anfield recruitment team are now ‘set to focus their energies’ on a move for the 19-year-old, with talks on the player’s side ‘advancing well’.
He then hinted at the potential value of a first offer from the Merseysiders, tweeting: “The Reds – that already kept information on the price tag to #SouthamptonFC – will try for getting a deal around £40m but starting soon with a first bid certainly lower than that.”
If Liverpool are to submit an opening offer of less than £40m, as Tavolieri has suggested, the likelihood is that Southampton will quickly send it back with a firm message of refusal.
The Championship club are believed to want £50m for Lavia and may be determined to hold out for that amount (Football Insider).
Despite the 19-year-old being hailed as an ‘incredible’ talent by a treble-winning manager in Pep Guardiola (mancity.com), the Saints’ reported asking price is rather steep for someone who’s only played regular senior football for one season.
Therefore, it’s understandable why Liverpool would attempt to get him for less than that, although they must be careful not to low-ball Southampton too much if they’re intent on trying to sign him, as doing so could duly annoy the south coast club into blanking the Reds full stop.
We may be shaping up for a month of back-and-forth between the two sides as they each try to strike the best deal possible, with a possibility of them meeting somewhere in the middle if it means Jurgen Klopp gets his man and the Saints enjoy a sizeable top-up to their own summer transfer kitty.
You can see Tavolieri’s tweet below, via @sachatavolieri on Twitter:
🔴 #LiverpoolFC set to focus now their energies on Romeo Lavia’s deal. I understand talks on players side are advancing well as the green light’s close but nothing done yet. The ideal projection #LFC would be to get him for the first summer camp with the team.
The Reds -that… pic.twitter.com/q5aJxplniI— Sacha Tavolieri (@sachatavolieri) July 4, 2023