Guillem Balague has confirmed that Liverpool have been keeping an eye on Athletic Bilbao forward Inaki Willams.
The Sky Sports’ Spanish football expert stated that the 22-year-old has a €50 million buy-out clause in his contract and is “certainly” looking to move out of Spain for his next club.
The versatile attacker Williams has only scored seven goals in all competitions this season and this doesn’t do justice to the price tag placed on him. Balague has revealed how that could play a part in his valuation fee.
“He was followed by Liverpool and has a €50m buyout clause,” Balague told Sky Sports. “I’m not sure any team would be willing to pay that right now because he has not proved that valuation.”
The Spanish attacker was signed by Bilbao in 2013 as an 18-year old talent. He played with Athletic Bilbao’s farm team CD Basconia. After showing immense promise with Basconia he was immediately called up to the reserve side in the Segunda B division. He started playing for both the reserve side and the first team before cementing his position in the first team. In late January 2016, having been scouted by the likes of Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City, Williams agreed to an extension of his contract until 2021. The deal included a €50 million buyout clause.
The Kop Times Verdict
Although, several clubs have been monitoring his performances this season, it is highly unlikely that they would be willing to pay that high a fee for a player who doesn’t seem fully ready to take on the challenges that the Premier League poses. Despite his below-average performances this season, the Premier League clubs seem to be surrounding him like sharks to get his name on their team sheets. This is because they believe he is a future prospect who could prove to be a great long term asset to the team.
Elsewhere, the Reds are also rumoured to be interested in Lorenzo Insigne, who recently signed a new deal extending his contract until 2022 with Napoli. The contract is said to earn him £17 million spread over 5 years, roughly £3.4 million a year.
It looks like Klopp is running out of options to reinforce the squad.
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