Liverpool have gone back in.
And been turned away again.
The pursuit of Yan Diomande is becoming one of the most extraordinary transfer standoffs of the summer.
A saga in which both sides keep escalating, and the destination still feels no closer than when it started.
Liverpool’s £100m Diomande bid rejected as RB Leipzig hold out for Bundesliga-breaking fee
According to TEAMtalk, Liverpool have submitted an improved offer of £100 million, for RB Leipzig’s 19-year-old winger Yan Diomande.
However, it has been rejected.
Leipzig have a very specific number in mind.
The current Bundesliga record for biggest sale stands at €148 million, approximately £127.5 million, for Ousmane Dembele.
That’s the fee Leipzig want before they’ll even consider letting Diomande leave this summer.
Liverpool opened the bidding at €100 million.
However, that was rejected.
They came back at €116 million.
Yet, that was rejected too.
The gap between where Liverpool are and where Leipzig want them to be is still significant.
And the German club know they have all the leverage.
€148 million qualifies as extraordinary.
However, €116 million, apparently, does not.
The frustration around the Diomande camp is growing.
His representatives are understood to be irritated by FSG’s bidding approach.
At 19 years old, Diomande has done enough in 18 months of top-level European football to attract attention from across the continent.
Andoni Iraola’s side are not walking away.
But they are actively working on contingency options should the Diomande pursuit reach its limits.
Bradley Barcola of Paris Saint-Germain is being explored.
And Brighton’s Yankuba Minteh remains on the radar.
However, the plan has always been Diomande first.
Liverpool have already signed Victor Munoz from Osasuna for €40 million.
Yet, the Diomande deal would cost more than three times that.
The bidding war isn’t over.
But the next bid needs to be the one that ends it.
Want to get the latest transfer news direct to your phone? Join our WhatsApp community by clicking here.
