Liverpool transfer strategy laid bare as 'contact' made for £63m-rated star

Liverpool are reportedly set to work on a deal to sign Bournemouth left-back Milos Kerkez after reaching an agreement over a move for Florian Wirtz. After announcing their first summer

signing, Jeremie Frimpong, the Reds are now reportedly moving ahead of their rivals in the race for highly-rated 22-year-old Leverkusen star, who is next on their list. Bayer Leverkusen

managing director Simon Rolfes has confirmed Liverpool's interest in the player, telling The Athletic's Seb Stafford-Bloor: "[Wirtz is] one of our players. Naturally, there’s

a lot of interest."There’s concrete interest from Liverpool. We just want good players, and ideally, you sign them as soon as you can." The Premier League champions are now in

direct contact with Bayer over a deal that could smash the club's £75m transfer record, set when they signed Virgil van Dijk in January 2018. Next up, will reportedly be Kerkez, with

TEAMtalk claiming the Reds' pursuit of the Bournemouth player is 'strategically timed' to follow the arrival of Wirtz. Kerkez is reportedly on board with a move that could be

worth up to £45million. The report adds that the potential arrivals of Wirtz and Kerkez 'underscores their ambition to revamp their squad with young, high-potential stars'.

Elsewhere, the Reds are claimed to have started preliminary contacts over signing Atalanta midfielder Ederson, according to Tutto Atalanta. However, Barcelona, Manchester United and

Newcastle United have also done so. The Brazil international, despite not publicly expressing his desire to leave, is said not to be willing to sign a new contract, with his current deal

expiring next year. It's not the first time the midfielder has been linked with a move to the Premier League, with United's interest dating back to last year. The 25-year-old

joined Atalanta from Salernitana in the summer of 2022 and went on to become one of the driving forces behind their famous Europa League triumph in the 2023/24 season. Although Atalanta are

said to have valued Ederson at £63million, there may be room to negotiate a lower fee to avoid losing him on a free transfer next summer.