Doubts emerge over claims Liverpool will trump Man Utd for star
There are doubts that Liverpool are looking to sign Cristian Romero following reports that the Reds were set to blow Manchester United out of the water for the Atalanta defender.
The Argentina international spent last season on loan at Atalanta from Juventus and they have an obligation to buy the centre-back for around €16m this summer.
Romero has been one of the best players in Serie A this season, playing in 42 matches in all competitions, with Atalanta qualifying for the Champions League again.
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The 23-year-old never made an appearance for Juventus and it’s now thought he could move on to the Premier League with Man United and Liverpool reportedly interested.
Spanish publication AS claimed on Monday that Liverpool were set to gazump Man Utd by offering €50m for Romero despite recently acquiring the services of RB Leipzig defender Ibrahima Konate.
The Reds have had their problems in defence this season with Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez suffering long-term injuries, while Joel Matip also missed large chunks of the season.
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By bringing in Konate, Klopp is obviously conscious of avoiding a similar scenario next season where they are relying on midfielders Fabinho and Jordan Henderson to fill in at centre-back.
However, Sport Witness isn’t convinced they will pursue Romero with their transfer for Konate suggesting ‘they won’t be making a big move for Romero’.
And in the same report Sport Witness brings us the latest from Italian newspaper L’Eco Di Bergamo, who claims Man Utd are ‘still at the window’ for Romero despite that reported interest from Liverpool.
Man Utd executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward and his recruitment team are ‘ready to invest €45m’ for the Atalanta defender but the Serie A outfit ‘aren’t in a rush to decide’.
Meanwhile, the Red Devils have reportedly fallen short by £30m in their first offer for Real Madrid defender Raphael Varane with United’s bid of £50m rejected as Los Blancos are demanding £80m.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has reportedly made Varane one of his top two defensive targets, seeing the France international as the perfect partner for Harry Maguire next season.