Roma have told Liverpool that £28m will not be enough to sign their Egyptian winger Mohamed Salah. The two clubs have held initial talks over a possible deal during which Liverpool indicated they would be prepared to offer that sum for the player.
The Serie A side, however, would not contemplate selling the 24-year-old for that price and it is now up to Liverpool to see if they want to increase the offer.
Jürgen Klopp has made the winger one of his top priorities as the club prepare for the new Premier League season and the Champions League play-off games.
Liverpool struggled for speed last season when they had to play without Sadio Mané, especially at Anfield where they found it difficult to break down teams, and Klopp believes Salah would add unpredictability to the side.
Salah has just completed his second season at Roma – he was there on loan from Fiorentina in 2015-16 – and has matured into one of Serie A’s most dangerous players. During his two seasons in the Italian capital he has scored 29 league goals in 65 games for the Giallorossi.
Liverpool were keen to sign the Egyptian in 2014 but he chose to join Chelsea instead for £11m. He failed to become a first team regular, however, and was loaned out to Fiorentina in February 2015 before joining the Serie A club permanently.
Liverpool are set to sign Dominic Solanke from Chelsea on 1 July. The 19-year-old has agreed terms with the Anfield club after refusing to sign a contract extension at Stamford Bridge amid concern over a lack of first-team opportunities.
Solanke’s current deal expires this summer but, as he is younger than 24, Liverpool will have to pay their Premier League rivals a compensation fee to be decided by a tribunal. The fee is expected to be in the region of £2m-£3m.