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The Serie A club are said to be banking on a little good will from the Reds to sign Lovren on the cheap.
Dejan Lovren almost joined AC Milan last summer but in the end his move to Serie A fell through. With just one year to go on his Liverpool contract, though, the now 30-year-old Croatian centre half is expected to depart at the end of the current season.
And according to Gazzetta dello Sport, he’s likely in the end to end up in Italy—but with Roma rather than Milan. That’s the story today at least, with Roma said to be hopeful of getting a deal done and banking on some good will from the Reds to do it.
In recent seasons, Liverpool have signed Mohamed Salah and Alisson Becker from the Serie A side, and Gazzetta say that the two clubs’ working relationship means Roma believe they can being in Lovren for as little as €5M whenever the offseason arrives.
On the surface, the fee seems low, but given Lovren’s age, contract status, and the current uncertainties—financial and otherwise—surrounding the game due to coronavirus, it’s not impossible it’s the best Liverpool can realistically hope for if Lovren is sold.
The alternative, of course, would be for the club to hold on to Lovren for his final season, making no changes in their centre half depth chart for one more year. If Lovren wants to go, though, it wouldn’t be surprising to see a cut-rate move sanctioned.
Liverpool under Jürgen Klopp have shown a past willingness to allow players to move on in search of playing time, and if Lovren wants to go somewhere he has a chance to be a starter it’s likely the club will at least try to facilitate it.
