Liverpool reach HUGE January decision on Marc Guehi transfer – another Hughes masterclass looms

A trusted journalist has revealed Liverpool are ‘adamant’ they will not sign Marc Guehi in January, and while reports in Spain are adamant the transfer door has now opened up for one club in particular, TEAMtalk can explain why and when a move to Anfield remains on the cards.

The 24-times capped England defender was the subject of intense interest from the Premier League champions over the summer. After finally agreeing on a fee in the closing moments of the window, Liverpool had agreed to pay Crystal Palace a £35m package with a further guarantee of a 10% sell-on clause.

And with Guehi having already agreed personal terms and already passed medical checks on Merseyside, Palace then pulled the plug on the deal after failing to secure a replacement.

Understandably, Guehi was left “devastated” and “betrayed” at the breakdown of his dream move – and the defender now faces face-to-face talks with the Eagles boss Oliver Glasner upon his return from international duty and with the Austrian seen as the decisive reason why the transfer was called off so late in the day.

However, Liverpool’s interest is not dead, and talk of a January move to Anfield is already bubbling along.

Those chances are aided by claims that Palace have already been forced to dramatically slash their asking price.

Despite that, The Times’ Liverpool FC specialist, Paul Joyce, insists a fresh move in the winter window will not be forthcoming from the Reds.

According to Joyce, Liverpool are ‘adamant’ that they ‘will not try to sign Guehi in January’ as they ‘would now only sign the England international on a free transfer next summer’.

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As a result of Liverpool’s stance, they leave themselves exposed to the risk of losing Guehi to other suitors in January.

Both Newcastle and Tottenham Hotspur were among those credited with an interest earlier in the summer, while his former club, Chelsea, continue to be linked with a swoop.

However, perhaps the most worthy threat comes from overseas. Real Madrid and Barcelona have already been tipped to make a bold move to sign the player, with the prospect of landing him on a free transfer very much of appeal to the LaLiga giants.

Unlike any Premier League side, they can sign the player on a pre-contract agreement from January 1 – potentially giving them an advantage.

And with that in mind, Spanish outlet Fichajes is convinced Guehi will end up at Real Madrid, claiming his signature has now become a ‘priority’ at the Bernabeu and that his ‘preference would be to wear white and land at the Santiago Bernabeu.’

Despite that, TEAMtalk fully expects Guehi to still make the move to Anfield – albeit as a free agent next summer.

Having already agreed to move to Merseyside, the Reds’ sporting director Richard Hughes remains confident he will still sign on the dotted line, some 10 months later than initially slated.

While a calculated risk not to pay cash in January, Hughes – barring a sudden injury crisis at Anfield – believes the Reds will be capable of coping without the player til then.

And the fact they can spare themselves a cash outlay to sign the 25-year-old will prove another stroke of genius at Anfield, with the sporting director getting his way when it came to several other transfers this summer.

Hughes will also know that Guehi already had reached full agreement over personal terms to join the Eagles – a story first broken by our transfer insider Rudy Galetti back in early July – and we expect a move to Anfield to be announced sometime in the new year.

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One of Ligue 1’s best wingers has spoken openly about Chelsea and Liverpool wanting to sign him during the summer transfer window, while another suitor in Tottenham, have been warned a deal might not be straightforward.

Elsewhere, one of Liverpool’s top targets in the summer transfer window is going from strength to strength at his new club, with his agent tipping him to win a major award this summer and with his new side feeling his value has already doubled.

And finally, Kylian Mbappe has directly told one of Europe’s best players to join him at Real Madrid, according to a report in Spain, with Liverpool’s plans to bring him to Anfield as a long-term successor to Mohamed Salah now in danger of being ruined.

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