€100m striker ‘willing to wait’ to join Liverpool and replace Darwin Nunez

Hugo Ekitike has made his stance on a potential move to Liverpool abundantly clear, according to a report, as an Eintracht Frankfurt official reveals the chances of the striker switching to Anfield in the summer transfer window.

Liverpool have been hugely active in the summer transfer window. Not resting on their laurels after winning the Premier League title last season, manager Arne Slot and sporting director Richard Hughes have signed Florian Wirtz, Milos Kerkez, Jeremie Frimpong, Armin Pecsi and Freddie Woodman already this summer, with Giorgi Mamardashvili also set to join.

The Merseyside club are not done yet, with Slot looking to bring in a new striker this summer.

However, in this context, it would be remiss to ignore the fact that Liverpool are currently in mourning after the passing away of forward Diogo Jota, who was tragically killed in a car crash in Spain.

With the club grieving the heartbreaking loss of Jota, Liverpool are unlikely to embark on active conversations with would-be transfer targets for a good few days yet as they come to terms with the devastating news.

TEAMtalk has long reported that Newcastle United striker Alexander Isak is manager Slot’s ‘dream target’.

However, with Newcastle potentially demanding £150million for Isak, Liverpool have alternatives in mind.

One of them is Ekitike, who has been a revitalised figure at Eintracht following an underwhelming spell at Paris Saint-Germain.

The 23-year-old French striker has scored 26 goals and given 14 assists in 64 appearances for the German club.

According to CaughtOffSide, Liverpool manager Slot has now made Ekitike a ‘priority target’ for the summer transfer window.

There is interest in the striker from Arsenal, Manchester United and Chelsea, but Liverpol are said to have placed him ‘at the top of their transfer plans’.

While claiming that Eintracht want €85–100 million (£73.3m, $100m – £86.3m, $117m) for Ekitike, the report has noted that ‘Ekitike is aware that Liverpool may need to offload players first to facilitate a move’ and is ‘willing to wait patiently for the Reds to clear space in the squad before advancing talks’.

CaughtOffSide has added that Darwin Nunez is heading out of Liverpool this summer, with the Premier League champions willing to include the Uruguay international and Italian winger Federico Chiesa in a swap deal for Napoli striker Victor Osimhen.

Nunez’s time at Liverpool so far has been underwhelming, and it seems that Liverpool believe that Ekitike would be an upgrade on him.

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Eintracht Frankfurt stance on Hugo Ekitike

Given the number of top clubs interested in a summer deal for Ekitike, it is hard to see the striker play for Eintracht next season.

However, the German club themselves are not panicking, with director of professional football, Pirmin Schwegler, staying calm.

BuliNews quotes Schwegler as saying: “The situation is very clear. There’s nothing more to add.

“We’re working with the players to make sure they’re fit after their vacation, so it doesn’t make sense to comment on transfer rumors right now.

“I’m happy that our core squad is in place, but I also know that anything can happen until September 1.”

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