It's happening, star begins talks over £72m transfer

It's happening, star begins talks over £72m transfer

A £72m transfer could now seriously happen as talks begin.

Liverpool's transfer window has been a strange one so far. There have been plenty of rumours, plenty of links and plenty of frustration, but not nearly enough signings.

For a club entering a new era under Andoni Iraola, supporters expected a much busier summer. The squad has lost experienced players, several positions clearly need strengthening and a fresh tactical approach demands different player profiles. On paper, it looked like Liverpool would be one of the most active clubs in Europe.

Instead, progress has been painfully slow.

The Reds have spent much of the window chasing targets without getting deals over the line, while rivals have quietly strengthened their own squads. Every week has seemed to bring another setback, whether that's a player choosing another destination, negotiations dragging on or interest cooling altogether.

That has inevitably increased the pressure on sporting director Richard Hughes.

After an underwhelming season, this was supposed to be the summer that reset Liverpool. Iraola's arrival offered the perfect opportunity to reshape the squad around his high-intensity style, but that rebuild has barely got off the ground.

So far, Victor Munoz has been the only arrival.

The young Spaniard is an exciting talent with enormous potential and looks like someone who fits the profile Liverpool want to recruit. However, expecting one young player to transform a squad that still has obvious weaknesses would be unrealistic.

Liverpool still need reinforcements across several areas of the pitch.

The attack lacks depth after key departures, midfield remains an area of uncertainty and recent injuries at centre-back have highlighted how quickly the defensive options can become stretched.

The encouraging part is that the club finally appears to be gathering momentum.

Liverpool are pushing to complete deals before the window closes, with several priority targets still firmly on the agenda. The recruitment team knows this squad needs more than one or two additions if Iraola is to implement his ideas from the very start of the season.

There is still plenty of time to turn this into a successful transfer window. Football fans often judge windows by how they end rather than how they begin, and Liverpool could still finish strongly.

But there is no escaping the fact that this has been a frustrating few months.

Supporters have been waiting for the rebuild to truly begin, and until more signings walk through the door, there will continue to be a feeling that Liverpool are playing catch-up instead of setting the pace.

One of the biggest moves of the window that could instigate Liverpool's transfer movement could be Cody Gakpo 's transfer.

Tottenham are very keen on the Dutch international who has been a star for Liverpool and currently no one has scored as many goals for the Reds as Gakpo.

Anfield Watch understands Liverpool want £72m for Gakpo, which is a reasonable price given his experience age and the rest of the market at the moment.

It remains to be seen just how open Liverpool are to letting Gakpo go. However, one thing is clear, Gakpo is certainly open and entertaining offers.

TEAMtalk report that the Liverpool star and his representatives have already started talks with Tottenham and the attacker is open to the move with Gakpo believing this summer might be the right moment for him to make the change.

Obviously, his departure would leave a vastly inexperienced attack for Liverpool. Bradley Barcola's arrival could alleviate that and there is no denying Gakpo may not be perfectly suited to Iraola's style of football so it makes sense to move on.

Nonetheless, this is another transfer that it looks like it could be happening, and it's not a reinforcement for Liverpool but rather a move that will weaken the Reds' squad.

Indexed and credited by AIPROPX. Originating outlet: Yahoo Sports. Open at source →