Liverpool-linked target Patson Daka confirmed his move to Leicester City, which officially ends any hopes the Reds had of signing the Zambian this summer.
Having set the Austrian Bundesliga alight with 46 goal contributions across all competitions this term, Jurgen Klopp’s men will hope that they haven’t made a dire mistake in not pursuing the 22-year-old, particularly given his bargain £23m price-tag (reported by Leicestershire Live).
“I will go to England and move to Leicester City. I had a great time here, Salzburg has become my second home,” the RB Salzburg forward told Kronen Zeitung (via Sportlens). “I will always be happy to come back here, but the Premier League has always been my big dream.”
The Merseysiders are thought to be keeping their options open nonetheless, with PSV’s Donyell Malen reemerging as a potential target.
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The transfer of Daka to Leicester carries some potentially worrying implications for Liverpool’s transfer business.
If we were genuinely interested in the Zambia international, as several publications have claimed, then balking at £23m suggests that our transfer budget is entirely reliant on player sales this summer.
Alternatively, it is possible that Daka preferred his chances of getting first-team minutes under Brendan Rodgers rather than having to compete with our star-studded forward line.
Of course, there’s also the possibility to contend with that our interest in the Austrian top-flight attacker was far from concrete.