Southampton are not content with £60m for Virgil van Dijk, despite the fact this would make the Dutchman the most expensive footballer in the history of the game.
Instead, the Echo claims they want £75m for their 25-year-old skipper, irritated by Liverpool’s aggressive pursuit of their prized asset after years of buying their best players.
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The report suggests Southampton ideally want a bidding war to ensue between us, City and Chelsea, but with Van Dijk already set on an Anfield switch, we’re not convinced our rivals will get involved.
£60m is already an absurd fee, but £75m simply takes the biscuit. It would make the centre-back one of the most expensive players of all time – costing just £5m less than Real Madrid signed Cristiano Ronaldo for in 2009.
We cannot see Liverpool agreeing to this price, meaning the saga will likely drag on until Van Dijk himself kicks up a fuss and Southampton have no choice but to sell.
By doing this, they turn Van Dijk into the bad guy and thus appease supporters.