Liverpool is weighing up a move for Real Sociedad midfielder Martin Zubimendi this summer . The Spanish star was part of the victorious Euro 2024 side.
According to The Times , Arne Slot is targeting Zubimendi as someone who can add control to the midfield. He has a release clause of $65m (£51m/€60m).
The 25-year-old fits the profile of technical number six that Slot wants for his new-look Liverpool team. The new coach intends to move away from Wataru Endo , who always appeared to be something of a stop-gap signing following his arrival last summer.
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Zubimendi is well known to Xabi Alonso, who spent time at Real Sociedad B before his huge success as a coach with Bayer Leverkusen. He shares an agent with him, as well as Bournemouth coach Andoni Iraola, which has proved advantageous to new Liverpool sporting director Richard Hughes. He already has a strong relationship with the man in question, Inaki Ibanez.
Meanwhile, Liverpool could offset some of the planned outlay on Zubimendi by selling Tyler Morton, who impressed on loan at Hull City last season. RB Leipzig and others are keen, and the Reds want $25m (£20m/€23m), which would equate to well over a third of the Basque star's release clause.
Such savvy business was typical of Michael Edwards' first spell at the club. He is back with FSG in an oversight capacity, and has put together the recruitment team headed up by Hughes — so this would be a statement signing for a new era, not only for Slot but also for the revamped backroom setup.
The ECHO also reports Liverpool's interest in Zubimendi and says that the holding midfield position became a priority once Slot had been given the chance to assess the squad in pre-season. As well as Morton, there's a possibility that Endo could be sold if a move goes through, with Liverpool having previously turned down an approach from Marseille valued at somewhere in the region of $15m (£12m/€14m).
“Martin’s a player all coaches would want," Alonso said of Zubimendi in 2022, via the Guardian . "He’s generous, he always thinks more about his teammates than himself. He has that ability to generate play, to make those around him better, always offering solutions; to improve the move. He understands what the next step is before the ball gets to him. He has that ability to organize the axis. I loved working with him.”
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