Harry Diamond
Thiago Alcantara is ‘not an active target’ for Liverpool as the club deny making contact with Bayern Munich over the signing of the midfielder.
Thiago has been strongly linked with a move to Merseyside after informing Bayern of his desire to leave the club this summer in search of a new challenge, the Spain international having won seven consecutive Bundesliga titles since moving to Munich from Barcelona.
Jurgen Klopp is believed to be a long-term admirer of the player who has just a year remaining on his current contract, with German publication Bild having reported on Thursday that Liverpool had made ‘official contact’ over a potential deal.
Earlier in the day, Bild had also reported that Manchester City had entered the race to sign Thiago – who played under Pep Guardiola at both Barcelona and Bayern Munich – and that the club were ‘offering more’ than the Reds as they bid to hijack the deal.
However, according to the Liverpool Echo, the Premier League champions have ‘not opened talks’ or made a bid and despite Klopp’s admiration for the player, they say that the midfielder ‘is not an active target’ for the club at present – a stance which has not changed.
Liverpool believe reports of a bid are an attempt by Bayern to ‘drum up interest’ in the player as they look to attract offers, the Bavarians keen to sanction his sale rather than risk losing the Spaniard on a free transfer next summer.
Bayern are reported to be demanding a fee in the region of €30m for the 29-year-old, a figure which makes any potential move to Liverpool difficult given the club’s financial restrictions amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Klopp has long insisted it will be a quiet window of recruitment for the Reds given the current climate, their capture of left-back Kostas Tsimikas from Olympiakos their only business of the summer so far.
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