Liverpool are the latest (and possibly the only) club to be interested in Islam Slimani. Arsenal and Leicester have reportedly given up on the signing for now, which leaves the Reds without big competition to make the transfer.
But it’s not easy as it seems. According to Correio da Manhã, now that the player’s €30m release clause has expired, the Sporting president Bruno de Carvalho is asking for much more than that amount.
This would be the reason why Leicester and Arsenal aren’t so keen on the player anymore. Correio da Manhã also says the Foxes are content after renewing Jamie Vardy’s contract, and the Gunners are now focused on signing Romelu Lukaku from Everton.
The Slimani saga has become quite boring in the past few months, since the Portuguese press have linked him to nearly all the Premier League clubs. However, Correio da Manhã aren’t one of the papers who have been excessively encouraging the player’s sale, so their information may deserve a little more attention.
The story claims that England should be the player’s destiny, but in case he ends up staying at Sporting, the club will offer him a new contract to keep him happy at the club.
Whilst Correio da Manhã’s information may be well sourced, we simply can’t see Liverpool paying more than the expired €30m clause. It would be ridiculous and verging on financial incompetency.
