Liverpool have an ace up their sleeve to secure the Premier League's brightest talent.
Once you have established yourself in Europe's toughest league, transfer offers come from teams and the money spent on such deals can be huge. Great talent is a commodity.
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Liverpool don't exactly need more x-factor in their squad, but the club are always open to making bold statements when recruiting players to maintain a high level of squad quality. Transfer budgets are usually spent wisely and therefore high-priced players can be approached if a move makes sense.
Before the season starts, Alexander Isak And Hugo Ekiteke were brought in as new strikers. However, at some point the wingers may have to upgrade, especially now that Mohamed Salah is nearing the end of his career, and given the lack of reliable support for Cody Agat.
So next summer we could see a move forward and Liverpool sporting director Richard Hughes may be able to beat out the competition for his ideal target. He has inside information about the deal.
Was the seed destined to turn red?
According to a new report from Football InsiderOne of the players Liverpool are hunting is the 25-year-old Bournemouth winger. Antoine Semeño. He started the Premier League season with fervor.
In the first eight games of the campaign, he scored six goals and provided three assists.
Manchester City and Arsenal are set to compete with Liverpool for his contract, but there is one small detail in his contract agreed with former Cherries sporting director Richard Hughes that could allow the Reds to renegotiate and ensure he moves to Merseyside rather than elsewhere next summer.
He has a release clause. The amount is still unknown, but Bournemouth are not going to stand in his way.
Speaking on the Inside Track podcast, Pete O'Rourke said: “It doesn't make much of a difference but clubs will be aware of the release clause that there is a certain figure that can be reached to allow them to activate it and try [to] sign Antoine Semenyo instead of trying to negotiate something with Bournemouth.
Bournemouth are keeping their exemption details confidential, and they have every right to do so. Obviously this release clause will make things easier, but I don't think it will change anything in that regard because I think it will be a pretty open race for Antoine Semenyo, probably next summer.”
Now, of course, if Hughes met Semenyo when he was at Bournemouth, it would instantly give the Reds an advantage because there would likely be an understanding there. We saw how useful Hughes' idea could be earlier this summer when Milos Kerkez also made the move from the south to the northwest.
But the existence of the release clause changes everything for Liverpool, not least because Hughes was likely involved in negotiations on the matter, so he may well have known what the amount was. The Cherries may want to keep this a secret, but the possibility is inevitable. There is information.
The Reds could therefore pounce on Semeño when the time comes and the club will be confident in their chances of success if that approach is taken. It is understood that around £75 million would be Bournemouth's maximum asking price, but the release clause could well be a cut-price deal.
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