'Perfect for Liverpool' 'Heir to Firmino' - Fans want Liverpool to hijack Arsenal move for Lautaro Martinez ⚽️
He seems to fit the bill but the asking price will surely put us off?
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Arsenal have reportedly made an enquiry over Inter Milan star Lautaro Martinez with a view to a potential move.
The likelihood of such an eventuality occurring has been questioned, however, with Sport Mediaset claiming that the player would not be interested in leaving the Serie A giants for a club outside of the Champions League.
Interestingly, a reliable outlet in The Athletic has claimed the opposite, though with the caveat that the Argentine international won’t be pried away from Milan in the swap deal the Gunners are reportedly hoping to enact.
Regardless, the faffing about seems to have somehow opened up a vacuum into which Liverpool fans and publications alike have jumped into.
Some Reds were keen to draw comparisons to Anfield favourite Roberto Firmino, an analysis that isn’t entirely wide of the mark given the player’s ability to drop deep and act as a link-up man.
Being actively involved in pressing high up in the opposition third, it’s certainly understandable why some have urged Liverpool’s recruitment team to turn their attentions to the Italian top-flight.
At 23-years-old, the Copa America-winner fits within the ideal age-range we’d expect Michael Edwards and co. to be considering with regard to potential forward targets, with Diogo Jota having signed for us at the same age last summer.
That all sounds well and good. But going back to the issue of finances - a topic that has dominated speculation surrounding our summer window - Inter Milan’s insistence on receiving money upfront for Martinez’s services would likely be a significant stumbling block in any potential pursuit from our side.
There is some good news in amongst all this - the Serie A holders are looking to cut costs in the interests of adopting a more sustainable club model, as noted by The Athletic.
However, we are also talking about one of the Italian outfit’s first-team starters; a player who has only missed three league games for the Nerazzurri in the last two seasons and flourished in his national side’s Copa America run.
This is certainly reflected in Marca’s €80m valuation (£68.2m), just shy of £4m from Transfermarkt’s £72m.
At the outset, that doesn’t seem like an asking price that we’ll be capable of meeting.
Of course, this all rather depends on what exactly our transfer budget is - a contentious issue that has been long since exhausted within speculation.
According to those with access to the club, Liverpool will be reliant on player sales to an extent in order to facilitate further signings.
However, if we are to take an update from the generally reliable Florian Plettenberg - who suggested the club have €100m (£85m) to play around with - as gospel, the recruitment team could have a bit more in the way of financial flexibility in the window than reports have given them credit for.
Operating under the reality of the financial ramifications of COVID-19, it’s not quite the budget many envisaged for Liverpool, though it would certainly open up some interesting doors as far as recruitment is concerned, with Martinez standing then as a viable option.
That being said, as of yet, there has been no indication that the Inter Milan star even features on our list of prospective transfer targets.
Nonetheless, should Plettenberg’s claim reflect the reality of our transfer budget, it’s an option that could be worth pursuing before the window draws to a close.
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