All the latest Liverpool transfer news as Arne Slot gears up for the new Premier League season with his side busy in the summer window
21:42, 19 Jul 2025Updated 21:48, 19 Jul 2025
Hugo Ekitike is a transfer target for Liverpool(Image: Photo by Ulrik Pedersen/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Liverpool have avoided a potential problem amid their hopes of signing Hugo Ekitike. The Eintracht Frankfurt striker has been heavily linked with a move to Anfield this summer as Arne Slot looks to bolster his attacking options.
The ECHO understands that the Premier League champions recently opened talks with the Bundesliga outfit over a deal for Ekitike, who has a €100 million (£85m) price tag. Liverpool turned to the Frenchman after links with Newcastle United earlier this week.
The Reds are reported to have already agreed personal terms with Ekitike, who has a long-term contract on the table. The ECHO understands that the Magpies had an offer worth almost €80m (£69.4m) rejected by Eintracht Frankfurt earlier this month.
As it stands, it remains to be seen whether or not Liverpool will land the 23-year-old. However, Dino Toppmoller appears to be preparing for Ekitike’s potential departure.
On Saturday afternoon, the Reds target was an unused substitute in a pre-season friendly between Eintracht Frankfurt and FSV Frankfurt. According to German outlet Bild, Ekitike stole the limelight at the PSD Bank Arena, despite not coming off the bench.
The report claims that the Frenchman was welcomed by fans chanting his name. Then, once the supporters made their way into the stadium and Ekitike had began warming up, ‘10,000 or so’ spectators cheered him on.
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Bild reckons that the Liverpool target was ‘scheduled’ to play, but ‘the fear of injury was probably too great’, so Toppmoller left him on the sidelines. Eintracht Frankfurt defeated their local rivals 3-2 as they celebrated their respective 125th anniversaries.
Speaking to club media after the game, the Bundesliga outfit’s manager glossed over Ekitike’s future. Toppmöller said: “It’s always fun to play in your own city and give the fans a game where they have a short distance to travel.
“It was, like last year, a fair game with plenty of chances and a few goals. So, it was a pretty successful test for all sides. To draw a broader conclusion, we were simply missing too many players.
“We could and should have scored four or five more goals and defended one or two counterattacks better; but overall, we were able to learn some important lessons.”
Liverpool will have been relieved to see that Ekitike was not risked ahead of a potential transfer – a dream scenario, so to say. Now, all eyes will be on Eintracht Frankfurt’s upcoming fixtures at the ADIDAS US TOUR 2025, which begins on Tuesday.
The Bundesliga outfit will jet off to the United Sates on Tuesday, July 22, as they step up preparations ahead of the new season. While overseas, Eintracht Frankfurt will play Aston Villa, Louisville City FC and Philadelphia Union.
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