Lille midfielder Boubakary Soumare reportedly turned down a move to Newcastle Utd in January as he hopes to join Liverpool in the future instead.
As reported by BBC Sport, it was suggested last week that Newcastle had failed with a £35m bid for the 20-year-old as the player himself didn’t want to make the move to St. James’ Park.
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Following on from that, Le10Sport, as re-reported by Read Liverpool, have now claimed that’s because he wants to eventually secure a move to Anfield to join Liverpool, while the original report also mentions Manchester United as a possible destination too.
It remains to be seen if his decision to hold out for a move to Merseyside in the summer proves to be a successful one, but given how Jurgen Klopp’s side are dominating the Premier League and remain on course to defend their European crown, it’s no surprise top players want to join his squad.
In turn, time will tell if he is of interest to Liverpool, or whether or not Man Utd could have an opening to make their move if the Reds are keen to look elsewhere.
Soumare has established himself as a key figure for Lille, making 29 appearances already this season and emerging as a promising talent in their midfield.
Whether or not either Liverpool or Man Utd believe he’s ready to make the next step up remains to be seen, but he’s seemingly made a bet on himself to be good enough to play at that level and not have to take a move to Newcastle in the meantime.