Odilon Kossounou, the star of Bayer Leverkusen, is admired by Manchester United, but Liverpool is reportedly prepared to try and sign him first.
Kossounou performed before coming to Leverkusen in July 2021 in the Ivory Coast, Sweden, and Belgium. Kossounou was acquired by the Bundesliga team for €23 million, and he has since made 101 appearances for the team.
The right-footed center-half, who is also capable of playing right defense, has contributed to Leverkusen’s greatest season to date.
As Leverkusen became the first Bundesliga team to go undefeated, winning the German crown by a significant margin, he made 33 appearances.
As they attempt an unprecedented triple, Xabi Alonso’s team is astonishingly unblemished in the DFB-Pokal (German Cup) and the Europa League.
Some important players who contributed significantly to Leverkusen’s success, such as Jeremie Frimpong and Kossounou, may go this summer, but players like Alonso and Florian Wirtz will remain.
Tottenham Hotspur will provide Man Utd competition for the latter, it was announced in February.
As per the latest information provided by CaughtOffside, Kossounou is still a target for Manchester United, Tottenham, Real Madrid, and Bayern Munich.
Transfers from Liverpool: Negotiations for Man Utd target planned
But Liverpool is now in the lead in the competitive competition for the 23-year-old’s talents, with Michael Edwards, CEO of Fenway Sports Group, hoping to pull off yet another incredible transfer.
In an effort to defeat teams like Manchester United and Tottenham and bring Kossounou to Anfield, Liverpool will “open talks” with Leverkusen shortly.
Scouts from Liverpool have been quite impressed with the defender, and there is now a “concrete chance” that he may leave Leverkusen.
Prior to the summer transfer window opening, Kossounou was given a price tag of €60 million (£52 million) by Alonso’s team. Although Leverkusen is aware that this amount would still result in a sizable profit, they do not want to lose the Ivory Coast international.
Given Edwards’ exceptional negotiating skills, it wouldn’t be shocking if Liverpool signed him for less than that £52 million price.
Arne Slot has previously expressed his desire for Liverpool to acquire a new left-sided center-half to eventually replace Virgil van Dijk. Despite being a right-side center back, Kossounou would still be a good addition to the team.
Due to Kossounou’s arrival as competition, Ibrahima Konate, who has struggled at times this campaign, might be able to return to his best. Joel Matip must be replaced by someone for Liverpool as well.
Liverpool may potentially sign a new left-sided center-half, as they are also monitoring Willian Pacho of Eintracht Frankfurt and Goncalo Inacio of Sporting Lisbon.
This summer, Liverpool may need to spend over £100 million to get two new defenders, which is obviously a significant quantity of money. However, these are the kinds of bold decisions that the Reds need to make if they hope to maintain their incredible success under Slot.
