One of Germany’s foremost football journalists has said that Liverpool have ‘real and big’ intentions to sign Manu Kone this summer.
Following the failed pursuit of Jude Bellingham, the Reds have now turned their attention towards another Bundesliga midfielder in the Borussia Monchengladbach dynamo.
Christian Falk was speaking to CaughtOffside when he explained that the 22-year-old has already had contact from Merseyside, with his club hoping to reap €40m-€45m (£34.5m-£38.8m) from his sale this summer.
The journalist outlined: “Jürgen Klopp and Liverpool see Manu Koné as a replacement for Jude Bellingham, who is going to Real Madrid instead of England.
“Liverpool have already contacted Koné’s management and expressed interest. The intentions of the Reds are ‘real and big,’ so say the people surrounding the Frenchman.
“A possible fee for the defensive midfielder should be between €40-45m, that is what Gladbach hope. Before Liverpool were interested, €30m was still under discussion. Koné’s contract with Borussia runs until June 30, 2025.”
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Liverpool’s pursuit of Kone took an intriguing twist on Friday with the news that Jorg Schmadtke’s son Nils is set to become the new sporting director at Monchengladbach (Kicker), coming just days after the former took on a similar role at Anfield.
That obvious connection could possibly help to smooth a course for the French midfielder to swap Germany for England, and Falk’s update further underlines the firmness of the Reds’ intentions to land the 22-year-old.
A fee in the £35m-£40m bracket doesn’t seem excessive for a player of that age who’s already been a regular in the Bundesliga for two seasons and who, as shown by one particularly sublime display against Bellingham’s Dortmund, can excel in a major European league.
He’s stood out as one of the best dribblers on the continent over the past 12 months, with his rate of 1.97 successful take-ons per match placing him among the top 4% of positional peers for that metric in Europe’s five main leagues (FBref).
The manner in which the Bellingham pursuit fell away is disappointing, of course, but signing Kone would be the best possible riposte.