‘For that to happen…’: Journalist issues reassuring Diogo Jota claim amid Liverpool exit links

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Liverpool’s mooted asking price for Diogo Jota would render him ‘out of reach’ for Newcastle United, according to Jacque Talbot.

Earlier this month, the journalist had reported for Football Transfers that the Magpies have been looking at a potential summer swoop for the 26-year-old.

A projected fee of £60m was mentioned in that report, although it now seems as if anyone wanting to pry the Portuguese forward from Anfield would need to pay even more.

Talbot told the LFC Transfer Room podcast in relation to Jota: “Someone near Newcastle has said ‘yeah, he’s on there’ [their transfer list]. He’s liked by the club.

“He’s probably a bit out of reach financially. You can see why. He ticks a lot of boxes, his versatility – he can play on the wing, centre-forward, he’s Premier League proven and stuff.

“I went to the guy at Liverpool and he was like ‘it’ll be about £70m for that to happen’. So, we put it out there and that’s not going to happen. I can’t see it.

“But I find it interesting. I think fans will find it interesting, like ‘oh wow, we like Jota’. It gives you an indication of how much money they are willing to spend in one position, but it got a bit out of hand.”

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Liverpool would be quite right to demand a lofty fee for Jota if Newcastle were to come calling, and even then they should think very carefully about even entertaining any offer from Tyneside.

Even though a sale of £70m would see the Reds bank almost twice as much for the 26-year-old as what they paid for him in 2020 (as per BBC Sport), would it be worth the £29m profit in order to strengthen a direct Premier League rival while also weakening the squad at Anfield?

While the Portugal attacker has endured a frustrating season which has been curtailed by injuries and yet to see him score (Transfermarkt), he’s shown more than enough in nearly three years on Merseyside to illustrate that he’s well worth having at the club.

He’s netted 34 times in 101 games for Liverpool and set up another 15 goals, scoring 15 times in the top flight last season as the Reds came within a point of winning a second league title in three years (Transfermarkt).

Thankfully, from Talbot’s update it seems unlikely that Newcastle will be able to raid Anfield for our number 20.

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