Liverpool transfer news: Virgil van Dijk next on wish list as Reds plot £183million triple swoop
Reds will shell out for Southampton defender and Monaco star Thomas Lemar after agreeing a deal to sign Naby Keita
LIVERPOOL are ready to spend another £135million to land Virgil van Dijk and Thomas Lemar — after making Naby Keita their club-record signing.
Jurgen Klopp’s £183m spree started as he agreed a £48m deal for RB Leipzig’s Keita.
He had a medical yesterday and will make the move to Anfield next summer.
The Reds will also pay an undisclosed premium for the Guinean midfielder.
Kop boss Klopp is set to smash the club’s transfer record again with a last-gasp £75m bid for Southampton centre-back VVD and are also prepared to test Monaco’s resolve with a £60m offer for Lemar.
The French club have rejected two bids but Klopp will not be put off.
The triple swoop could pave the way for the exit of Philippe Coutinho, who has been the subject of four rejected bids from Barcelona, yet Liverpool insist he is not for sale.
Previously, the Reds said they had dropped their interest in Van Dijk after Saints threatened to report an illegal approach to the Premier League.
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But Klopp is preparing a stunning late move to get his No1 target to rebuild his defence.
Van Dijk, 26, has been on Klopp’s wishlist for a long time and he wants to build his defence around the Dutchman.
Southampton say he is going nowhere – but they also have a player that is training away from their first team.
Saints boss Mauricio Pellegrino faces a massive task to get Van Dijk back playing.
Chelsea and Arsenal have also been tracking his progress since his arrival from Celtic in 2015.
They can offer the lure of a high-profile season in London before the World Cup at the end of the campaign.
The Gunners had been interested in Lemar earlier this summer but Arsene Wenger claimed the deal was ‘dead’ after insisting Monaco had closed the door on further sales.
The Ligue 1 champions have already sold Bernardo Silva and Benjamin Mendy to Manchester City and Tiemoue Bakayoko to Chelsea — with teenage striker Kylian Mbappe on the brink of joining Paris Saint-Germain.
But following Klopp’s bid for Lemar, who can play centrally or out wide, Liverpool hope to change Monaco’s stance in the coming days.
It is clear owners FSG are ready to bankroll the ambitious deal.
Liverpool snapped up Keita yesterday and the 22-year-old will officially join the Reds in July 2018.
Keita scored eight goals and provided eight assists to help Leipzig finish second in the German Bundesliga last season.
The deal will surpass the £35m paid in 2011 to Newcastle for Andy Carroll.
Meanwhile, Coutinho is expected to be fit for Brazil against Ecuador on Thursday night despite the fact he has been sidelined for nearly a month with an apparent back injury.
The 25-year-old has not played for Liverpool so far this season after submitting a transfer request to try to force through a move to Barca.
Brazil doctor Rodrigo Lasmar said: “From a medical point of view, Philippe is in the perfect condition to play.”
