Liverpool intent on double raid of Southampton’s cookie jar
Published:Southampton may have hung up the nets at St Mary’s for another summer, but it’s taken no time at all for the south coast club to come under siege, with Liverpool among the main protagonists trying to pilfer their best talent.
Saints manager Mauricio Pochettino is the new 1/2 favourite to replace Tim Sherwood at Tottenham, while it’s already been widely reported that the Reds had launched a £20m bid for their World Cup-bound skipper Adam Lallana.
However, with Southampton valuing their playmaker at around the £25m mark, Brendan Rodgers has been forced to go back to the drawing board on his original offer.
As a result the latest reports have Liverpool’s boss preparing to up the ante by coming back to Southampton with a huge bid of £40m for Lallana and Croatian international centre-back Dejan Lovren.
With such a mammoth amount laid on the table for the duo, this is an offer which is sure to fully test the resolve of Southampton’s money men.
For Liverpool, it’s far simpler; they must strengthen with top quality additions if they are to sustain a double-pronged challenge on the league title and the Champions League next season.
Lovren has been a revelation in the Premier League this term and Rodgers has targeted the 24-year-old to become his new defensive lynchpin at Anfield.
Rodgers – who witnessed Lovren score the winning goal for Saints as well as keep his own rampant side at bay for 90 minutes at Anfield earlier in the season – is desperate for a defensive leader to help plug the leaks which ultimately cost him the Premier League.
Like Lallana, Lovren is another Southampton player heading for Brazil, so Liverpool will be mightily keen to sew up any deal in the coming weeks.
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