Bournemouth have reportedly reached an agreement with Liverpool over signing Dominic Solanke in a permanent deal worth £19m, but are set to face a fight with Premier League rivals Brighton.
The 21-year-old has been linked with several Premier League clubs since the opening of the January transfer window, after struggling for game time with the Reds.
Liverpool Echo reporter James Pearce tweeted that the Reds had agreed a £19m fee with Bournemouth for the sale of Solanke, who initially joined Anfield on a free transfer in 2017.
Despite the Cherries seemingly being in pole position, Daily Mirror journalist David Maddock added that Liverpool were also mulling over a bid from Brighton for the 21-year-old.
He tweeted: "Liverpool are considering offers from Bournemouth and Brighton for Dominic Solanke. Both want to sign him permanently, for a fee that would be in excess of £20m including add-ons. Klopp will allow him to leave if full valuation met."
Liverpool initially believed the fee for Solanke from Chelsea should be £3M, Chelsea wanted £10M. An undisclosed agreement was later reached. Either way Michael Edwards has negotiated at least a £9M profit on Solanke. 27 competitive appearances, 1 goal.
— DaveOCKOP (@DaveOCKOP) January 4, 2019
The former Chelsea striker had been a loan target for Crystal Palace, but Eagles boss Roy Hodgson confirmed on Wednesday that a proposed deal had fallen through.
It was understood that concerns over the forward's fitness forced Palace to reconsider the move, with Hodgson admitting that he was left disappointed by the outcome.
He said (as quoted by the Evening Standard): "Unfortunately it is a club decision. It turns out there were complications and the club decided it wasn’t the right moment to do it.
"He had made his mind up in our favour, but it didn’t work out. But you accept these things as a manager."
After failing to break through into Chelsea's first-team, Solanke joined Premier League rivals Liverpool after the expiration of his contract with the Blues in 2017.
Having featured 27 times across all competitions last season for the Reds, the one-cap England international has struggled to force himself into Jurgen Klopp's match-day squad this season, and has failed to make a single appearance.
Source : 90min