Curtis Jones Nears Inter Move as Liverpool Faces Midfield Gamble

Curtis Jones has never truly been the main man at Liverpool. Not in the way Steven Gerrard was. Not in the way Mohamed Salah is. Yet the prospect of the last Scouser in the squad walking out the door at 25 has hit Anfield like a punch to the gut.

That exit now feels closer than ever.

Jones on brink of Inter move

Fabrizio Romano dropped his trademark “here we go” on Monday lunchtime, confirming that Inter have reached an agreement in principle with Liverpool over a deal for Jones. The Italian champions are understood to be paying an initial €30m with a further €4-5m in add-ons (€35m in total, around £34.3m).

Gianluca Di Marzio detailed the structure: €30m up front plus performance-related bonuses. La Gazzetta dello Sport echoed that figure and went stronger still, claiming an “official announcement is expected in the next few hours”.

Liverpool-based outlets are more cautious. The ECHO and James Pearce of The Athletic both report that, while a deal is “within sight”, a final agreement has not yet been signed off. A medical is being planned, but the last paperwork is still to be completed.

The direction of travel is clear. Barring a late twist, Jones’ final season in red was Arne Slot’s last, when the Toxteth-born midfielder morphed from versatile No. 8 into an auxiliary right-back and tactical firefighter.

He leaves behind a curious legacy. Touted as a maverick attacking talent when he first broke into Jurgen Klopp’s side, Jones was reshaped into a press-resistant, possession-heavy No. 8 who covered three midfield roles and, more recently, full-back. He never quite became the star many imagined. He did become indispensable cover.

And that is where the dread kicks in for Liverpool supporters.

Liverpool ready to roll dice in midfield

Jones’ departure exposes a squad already thin in central areas. Yet the message from within the club, according to multiple reports, is stark: do not expect a like-for-like replacement.

Journalist David Lynch, speaking via Anfield Index, has been told there is “close to zero chance” of Liverpool signing another midfielder specifically to replace Jones. Instead, 19-year-old Trey Nyoni is set to step up as the fourth-choice central midfielder.

That is a huge leap of faith.

Wataru Endo offers a more defensive option, while James McConnell’s proposed loan to Preston North End has been placed “on hold”. The pause feels telling. Keeping the 21-year-old around would preserve another homegrown body in a squad already wrestling with UEFA’s non-homegrown limits for the Champions League.

Stefan Bajcetic, who trained on an individual programme all summer, is unlikely to be a serious factor in the short term and has attracted interest from Getafe. So the internal solutions are either very young or not fully fit.

Liverpool will also lean on defensive versatility. New loanee Ronald Araujo played six times at right-back for Barcelona last season and is rated highly in one-v-one duels out wide. Jeremy Jacquet and Joe Gomez can both cover Jeremie Frimpong while Conor Bradley recovers, and Calvin Ramsay remains at the club despite loan talk.

Put bluntly, Liverpool believe they can patch it up without spending. The homegrown issue is a major driver: losing Jones, a club-trained player, and replacing him with a non-homegrown signing would tighten an already restrictive registration puzzle.

Targets such as Adam Wharton, who fuelled social media chatter after winning an eBay auction for a signed Istanbul 2005 Gerrard shirt, have either been deemed too expensive or not quite right for Andoni Iraola’s plans.

It is still a risk. Alexis Mac Allister and Ryan Gravenberch both hit high levels last season but carried heavy loads. Nyoni is untested at this level. Vinny O’Connor of Sky Sports has suggested “you would expect a replacement to be brought in” if Jones left, but those close to Liverpool’s thinking see no obvious, affordable option on the market.

If nothing changes, the Reds may close the window lighter again in a key zone, just a year on from lifting their 20th league title.

Quansah saga: a blunder that might not blow up

If Liverpool’s midfield looks vulnerable, centre-back is a reminder of how quickly planning can unravel.

Last season’s biggest misstep came with Marc Guehi. Liverpool thought they had their man from Crystal Palace, only for Steve Parish to pull the plug on deadline day while the defender was undergoing a medical. By January, Guehi joined Manchester City for a lower fee than Liverpool had initially agreed, with his wage demands then beyond what the Reds were prepared to pay.

The more painful error, though, was letting Jarell Quansah leave before Guehi was actually secured.

Quansah, one of the most promising young defenders in the Premier League, moved to Bayer Leverkusen for a fee that already looks like a bargain. Liverpool spent most of the season juggling just two senior centre-backs, often out of form and often injured. The club had inserted a buy-back clause, available this summer or next, strongly hinting they knew a return was likely. The financial logic of that original sale still baffles many.

Quansah has impressed in Germany. His buy-back fee is believed to drop next year. Yet Liverpool did not move this summer, trusting the arrivals of Jeremy Jacquet, the return to fitness of Giovanni Leoni and the loan of Araujo to bolster the position.

Then Arsenal appeared.

Sky Sports and The Athletic both reported last week that the Gunners had opened discussions for Quansah, just a year after he left Anfield. The prospect of a homegrown centre-back, groomed at Kirkby, returning to England in a rival’s colours was a nightmare scenario.

That threat now seems to be receding. Sky Sports report Arsenal are “in advanced talks” to sign Ezri Konsa from Aston Villa. Konsa, like Quansah, prefers the right side and can also cover right-back. Arsenal have been linked with him for weeks, and their Quansah interest may have been a negotiating tool to push Villa’s price down from the £60m being quoted.

Whatever the motive, Liverpool look to have dodged the indignity of seeing Quansah line up for a direct rival – at least for now. The buy-back clause still sits there, ticking away, and the door to a future Anfield return remains ajar.

Aranda on radar as Liverpool hunt next South American gem

While the first team wrestles with gaps, Liverpool’s recruitment department continues to cast its net deep into South America.

An agreement is already in place for Colombian attacking midfielder Samuel Martinez, who will join the club next year. Now attention has turned to Argentina.

El Crack Deportivo report that Liverpool are among a cluster of clubs “courting the services” of Boca Juniors’ Tomas Aranda, a 19-year-old attacking midfielder who can also play off the left. He has a $20m release clause – around £14.7m – and has produced one goal and three assists in 19 appearances this season.

Those numbers are modest, but the endorsement is not. Boca president Juan Roman Riquelme, a legend in Aranda’s position, has described him as a “great gem” and, according to the report, “doesn’t want to know” about selling him.

Pressure may come from elsewhere. El Intransigente state that a bid close to the release clause could force Boca into a “difficult decision”. Chelsea are given headline billing in Argentina, with Liverpool also said to be following Aranda “closely”. Inter, Arsenal, Bayer Leverkusen, the City Football Group, Parma, Como and Brazilian clubs Corinthians and Sao Paulo are all named as admirers.

This is the market Liverpool are increasingly targeting. Deals for Martinez, Mor Talla Ndiaye, Ifeanyi Ndukwe, Rio Ngumoha and Nyoni show a clear strategy: cut out the middleman clubs and secure elite prospects early, before their prices explode in Europe.

The Reds have also been linked with Tijuana playmaker Gilberto Mora, the 17-year-old who caught the eye at the Under-17 World Cup with Mexico. The pattern is obvious. Liverpool’s long-term rebuild is being drawn up in South American ink.

Ndukwe loan, Spurs eye Gakpo, Nunez on the move

One of those recent investments is about to take a significant step.

Multiple outlets report that Ifeanyi Ndukwe is close to joining Levante on a season-long loan. The Austria Vienna academy graduate impressed at centre-back in pre-season and will now get the chance to play in LaLiga. Because Spain’s top flight is classed as a Band 1 competition for work permit purposes, Ndukwe can accelerate the points he needs to qualify for a UK work visa under post-Brexit rules. Paul Gorst has reported that the deal is not yet signed, but Levante are “understood to be at the front of the queue”.

In north London, Tottenham Hotspur are plotting a late attacking spree. Sky Sports say Spurs want three forwards before the window shuts, with Cody Gakpo high on their list for the left side. Savinho, on the opposite flank, is another priority, while a centre-forward – with Omar Marmoush among the options – would complete the set.

Pedro Neto is viewed as an alternative if Spurs cannot land Gakpo. The suggestion is that Tottenham are waiting to see whether Liverpool sign Bradley Barcola and potentially his Paris Saint-Germain team-mate Ibrahim Mbaye before moving for Gakpo on top of Savinho.

Elsewhere in Saudi Arabia, Darwin Nunez is on the move again. Frozen out at Al Hilal, he is set to join Al Diriyah on loan. Nunez had been expected to link up with Salah at Trabzonspor, but that deal collapsed. He will now stay in the Saudi Pro League for at least another season, with Sacha Tavolieri reporting that Al Diriyah’s willingness to cover 75% of his wages proved decisive.

Endrick rumour unpicked

On paper, Endrick to Liverpool makes sense. The Brazilian can play off the right or through the middle, he already has top-level experience, and Liverpool need depth in both roles.

The story behind the rumour is anything but convincing.

It first surfaced on Madrid Universal, a Real Madrid fan site that collates stories on their players and targets. They cited Mundo Deportivo, who claimed Endrick is on the fringes at Madrid thanks to competition and the arrivals of Yan Diomande and Carlos Espi, and that Liverpool had registered interest in either a €65m permanent deal or a loan.

Mundo Deportivo then pointed to “the English press, specifically Livescore”. Livescore’s piece turned out to be a republished article from Anfield Watch, which itself relied on an unsourced report from Fichajes – a regular in the nonsense columns.

Fichajes went further still, stating that “Jose Mourinho is counting on the player for the upcoming 2026-27 season, although his future will depend on the attacker's own decision.” That already clashed with last week’s reporting from The Athletic’s Mario Cortegana, who revealed that Endrick, Real Madrid and Mourinho had agreed he would stay and “fight for his place”.

Fichajes even acknowledged that Endrick has consistently maintained his intention to compete for minutes at Madrid and that the club’s leadership opted to keep him in the squad. What they never explained is how, with nothing changing, this had suddenly become a live transfer story.

It hasn’t. It is noise, built on recycled speculation and circular sourcing.

Liverpool’s summer, by contrast, is being defined by very real decisions: letting Jones go, trusting Nyoni, gambling on centre-back cover and chasing the next Aranda rather than the finished Endrick. The question now is simple – when the games start to bite, will that boldness look like vision or negligence?