Liverpool transfer news: Reds will switch to plan B signing THIS WEEK if rivals don't relent for star

Liverpool will move to their plan B soon if there's no movement

Liverpool will switch to their plan B at centre-back if they cannot make progress on signing their favoured option, Marc Guehi, this week, according to TEAMtalk sources, while the Reds’ top offer for the England man has also been revealed.

The Reds are continuing to work on their search for a new central defender and have set a clear deadline. If no agreement is reached this week with Crystal Palace for Guehi, they will switch their focus to Parma’s Giovanni Leoni.

The main obstacle in the Guehi deal remains Crystal Palace’s asking price. Palace want around £45/50m, despite the player having just one year left on his contract.

Liverpool, who have already agreed personal terms in principle with the England international, are willing to go up to £40m including bonuses, but not beyond that figure for now.

Palace are taking their time, partly because they need to secure a replacement before letting Guehi leave. But Liverpool do not want to wait until the final days of the transfer market to make their move.

If there is no breakthrough this week, Liverpool will put pressure on Parma for Leoni. The Serie A side already turned down an informal approach from Tottenham, who valued him at around €35m (£30.2m), as Parma want at least €40m (£34.5m) guaranteed.

Moreover, it’s also important to consider the player’s intentions: until a few days ago, he prioritised Italy for his continued development over going abroad. However, Liverpool, if they decide to go all in on him, will certainly try to persuade him to change his mind.

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Liverpool face defender toss-up

That Palace might be likely to sell Guehi has been revealed recently, with Ben Jacobs stating: “Palace want to sell Guehi now because he won’t sign a new contract, but the England defender is prepared to see out his contract if the right opportunity doesn’t emerge.”

Meanwhile, Florian Plettenberg has suggested there’s a genuine chance Leoni is signed if Guehi isn’t, though there is competition for his signing.

“Liverpool FC are seriously considering talented 18 y/o promising centre-back Giovanni Leoni. He is high on the list,” he said.

“Should a move for Marc Guehi fall through, it is possible that Liverpool will push for Leoni.

“Several top Italian clubs are keen on him, but Liverpool are advancing in the background.”

As such, there is a decision on which deal Liverpool feel is best, and which has the best chance of being pulled off.

Liverpool round-up: Barcola not on radar

A report has suggested that senior Liverpool figures have dismissed reports that the club are interested in signing Bradley Barcola.

In fact, they are not expected to bring in a new left-sided attacker as they don’t want to stem the progress of young winger Rio Ngumoha.

Meanwhile, it has been suggested that Liverpool target Alexander Isak has made it clear that he’ll never play for Newcastle again.

It’s been reported that the striker regards his career at St James’ Park ‘finished’ and he has no desire to reintegrate into the squad, even if he’s not sold this summer.

Who is Giovanni Leoni?

By Samuel Bannister

One of the latest big defensive prospects in Italian football, Leoni has worked his way up through the ranks and already has one season of Serie A action behind him by the age of 18.

Born in the Italian capital, he was raised as a Roma supporter. But he never joined his hometown team’s academy, since his family relocated to Padua when he was five years old.

Vigontina were his first youth club, before he developed with Cittadella and ultimately joined Padova as a 12-year-old.

Leoni made his Serie C debut in March 2023, becoming Italy’s youngest professional footballer that season at the age of 16 years and three months.

He made three Coppa Italia appearances for Padova in the first half of the following season before setting out on a loan spell with Sampdoria, stepping up to Serie B in the process and helping his new side reach a play-off spot.

Leoni was an unused substitute in the preliminary round of the play-offs, which Sampdoria lost, and barely two months after his move was made permanent, he was being transferred again.

This time, it was a step up to Serie A for the youngster, still only 17 at the time he was acquired by Parma (his 18th birthday wasn’t until December). Coincidentally, he made 17 appearances in his first Serie A season.

While he statistically doesn’t stand out too much yet, Leoni’s potential makes him attractive to a number of clubs. He has an imposing figure at 6ft 5in, which he makes the most of in aerial duels.

But he also possesses good traits with the ball at his feet and can slot in on the right-hand side of a centre-back department.

That has usually been within a back three so far, but given his ability to play in the middle of that kind of backline, he should be able to adapt to a back four as well. In fact, he was trusted to be at the heart of Parma’s defence in games against the likes of Napoli and Lazio towards the end of the 2024-25 season.

Parma’s head coach at the time, Cristian Chivu, earned a step up to Inter over the summer. And after taking the job, the former Ajax, Roma and Inter defender backed Leoni for a bigger destiny as well, stating his expectations of Leoni becoming a full international for Italy on a regular basis.

So far, Leoni has represented his nation at under-18 and under-19 level. He was named in Italy’s preliminary squad for the under-21 European Championship this summer as well, but didn’t make the final cut.

His trajectory is certainly an upwards one, though, and after the incremental increases in quality he has shown so far, the big boys are now circling.

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