Liverpool offer players in part-exchange in fresh Dempsey talks

Talks are centring on the identity of the makeweights in a deal that is expected to be worth around £7 million, with Charlie Adam and a number of fringe players discussed

 EXCLUSIVE
By Wayne Veysey | Chief Correspondent

Liverpool have revived their move for Clint Dempsey by opening fresh talks with Fulham over a deal worth £7 million, Goal.com can reveal.

The Merseysiders are back in negotiations with the Londoners, with discussions centring on the players who could move to Craven Cottage in part-exchange.

Liverpool are reluctant to meet Fulham’s asking price for the 29-year-old even though the Londoners will settle for a fee of around £6-7m.

Sources have said that discussions have focused on the identity of the players that could be used as makeweights in the deal in order to meet Fulham’s valuation.

Manager Martin Jol is in the market for a central midfielder after selling Mousa Dembele and Danny Murphy this summer, prompting Fulham to enquire again about Charlie Adam but it is understood that he is reluctant to move down south.

A number of junior members of the first-team squad have also been discussed as alternatives as Liverpool attempt to bridge the gap between the cash sum they are offering and the fee that Fulham want.

Liverpool have not yet made a concrete bid for Dempsey but there is a growing expectation that their summer-long pursuit of the American will reach a successful conclusion in the next 36 hours.

As revealed by Goal.com last week, Fulham have lodged a formal complaint to the Premier League about Liverpool’s conduct by effectively accusing them of tapping up the midfielder.

Nevertheless, negotiations have been revived as Jol and senior Fulham figures accept that there is no way back for Dempsey at the club.

The 29-year-old has made it clear that he wants to quit Craven Cottage for Liverpool, whose manager Brendan Rodgers has admitted that he has made enquiries about signing the player.

As revealed by Goal.com earlier this month, Dempsey has been training on his own after making it clear he does not want to play for the Londoners again while waiting for a move to Liverpool to materialise.

The attacking midfielder, who scored 17 Premier League goals last season and 23 in all competitions, has rejected Fulham’s offer of a new three-year contract that includes an option for a fourth year.

The west Londoners have fined Dempsey for refusing to play for the club and Jol has said that it would be “impossible” to keep the player at Craven Cottage.

The American has been left in limbo while his future remains up in the air but he has been reluctant to consider alternative offers, with Sunderland showing the most interest.

Dempsey, who moved to west London five-and-a-half years ago, believes that Liverpool’s interest could be the last opportunity he gets to play for one of the elite Premier League clubs.

 

 

Source : Goal.com