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Liverpool Echo
Liverpool Echo
Sport
Paul Gorst

Liverpool transfer state of play - Saul Niguez, Donyell Malen, Renato Sanches

All is calm in Jurgen Klopp's world right now.

As the transfer window continues to grab the collective attention of the football world, he is removed from the madness, whipping his Liverpool players into shape in Austria.

Monday kicked off week two for the Reds boss and his team in Saalfelden as they continue their month-long training camp ahead of the new Premier League season in August.

That included £36million new-boy Ibrahima Konate, who is set to make his debut in one of the two 30-minute matches the Reds have lined up on Tuesday evening.

He is the sole arrival so far at Anfield, despite the intensity of the daily links to a whole host of players across Europe.

A forward and a midfielder remain on the wishlist in the Anfield recruitment department, but a game of patience must now ensue inside a fanbase who have, if social media is any gauge of the temperature, become increasingly frantic about the lack of additions to Konate's early signature.

Here's how things stand at present inside Liverpool's transfer window.

Departures

Nat Phillips is a wanted man.

After 21 appearances last season, the man affectionately dubbed the 'Bolton Baresi' by Reds fans is attracting plenty of interest.

Whereas once the likes of Swansea and Bristol City made their interest known, now Liverpool are now hearing of suitors from the Premier League, with both Brighton and Burnley credited with a hat in the ring.

The Reds are understood to be relaxed about the situation and will only look to sell if Phillips himself makes it clear he is keen for a fresh challenge in the top flight.

The defender will start the season as fifth choice at Anfield and may feel like he can be playing regular first-team football elsewhere in the Premier League.

If Phillips communicates that then the Reds will be looking for about £15m for the 24-year-old.

Once again, Harry Wilson is looking to the outside for the next stage of his career.

After loan spells with Hull, Derby, Bournemouth and Cardiff, Wilson is eyeing a permanent exit this summer.

Despite having no real future on Merseyside, sporting director Michael Edwards is not prepared to sanction Wilson's exit for a cut-price fee and will be asking for around £12-15m for the Wales international.

Fulham, it is understood, are the most likely destination right now, while there were negotiations with Burnley 12 months ago.

The Cottagers are preparing for another season in the Championship following their relegation and Wilson's ability and experience in English football's second tier are desirable traits for new boss Marco Silva.

Brentford and Benfica are also believed to be keen on Wilson, but reported interest from Porto is wide of the mark.

One player who is a target for Porto, however, is Marko Grujic.

After his loan spell in Portugal last season, the Dragons want to make his move a permanent one.

Sergio Conceicao is understood to be desperate to see Grujic become a Porto player, but with Liverpool's asking price of somewhere between £12-15m, the Portuguese giants need to offload themselves before a return to the negotiating table.

Anfield sources are continuing to stress that Takumi Minamino won't be allowed to leave after spending the second half of the season on loan with Southampton.

It would take a sizable offer for the Reds to entertain selling the Japan international and interest is minimal as it stands.

Those inside the club also believe Ben Davies' future to be at Anfield, but six months on from his cut-price move of an initial £500,000, the left-sided centre-back is yet to play a competitive minute in Liverpool red.

Celtic and Burnley were both interested in January and an offer deemed to be a presentable one will surely be looked at long and hard by Klopp and sporting director Edwards.

Xherdan Shaqiri has been attracting interest from Sevilla, Roma and Lazio over the past 18 months.

A departure appeared on the cards last October before the Switzerland international chose to stay put with Klopp's side.

An impressive Euros for a likable Swiss side may see others pick up the phone to Liverpool before the window closes and the club will be open to offers.

The same applies to Divock Origi, whose career has stalled massively at Liverpool.

Just one goal last season, against Lincoln in a 7-2 Carabao Cup win, was a paltry return, even for someone whose appearances in a red shirt have often been as a substitute.

Wolves have been credited with a long-standing interest.

Neco Williams is a player who may yet seek pastures new with Liverpool ready to ask for £10m for the Wales right-back.

The Premier League quartet of Leeds, Southampton, Burnley and Aston Villa have all expressed genuine interest over the past year or so, although the latter's has since waned considerably.

Southampton's loan deal for Minamino in January came about after the south coast club actually got in touch with the Reds, initially, over Williams.

Incomings

Liverpool are understood to be keen to recoup from player sales before making a splash in the market themselves.

"Getting the injured players back makes us already better. These are our first transfers," Klopp told the ECHO back in May before stating his belief that it will be a "calm window" last week.

He said: "If somebody wants to leave, he can come to me and can tell me and then I think about it. Nobody came so far, so obviously no rush from the players’ side as well.

"The market anyway is a really calm one in the moment, I think. There was [Jadon] Sancho and maybe somebody else, OK, Konate we did that early, but it’s a really calm window.

"Let’s see what happens and all of these things, but in the moment, everybody has the chance to impress me and I hope they do."

Donyell Mallen, the PSV forward, has his admirers inside the Anfield recruitment team, but with Borussia Dortmund set to lose Sancho to Manchester United, the Netherlands frontman has been earmarked to replace him in Germany.

At the age of 22, Malen's profile, versatility and ability fit the bill for what Liverpool are looking for, at least.

Liverpool spoke to Watford about Ismaila Sarr's availability last year before signing Diogo Jota from Wolves.

The Reds were quoted around £40m at the time, and while the Senegal winger has been linked once more of late, it would have to come at a significantly lower sum this time around after his year in the Championship with the Hornets.

Lyon midfielder Houssem Aouar has re-surfaced of late on the rumour mill, with reports suggesting the France international could be available for between £20-25m.

Liverpool's relationship with Lyon - which owes to the complete collapse of a £50m move for Nabil Fekir three years ago - however, is likely to make that deal a tough one to negotiate.

The Reds, it is believed, spoke to the representatives of Borussia Monchengladbach midfielder Florian Neuhaus earlier this year, but no progress is imminent.

Renato Sanches, Saul Niguez and Youri Tielemans have all been mentioned over the last few weeks, with speculation over a Gini Wijnaldum replacement reaching fever pitch.

A midfielder remains on the agenda, but sources continue to stress how contract talks with some of the club's biggest stars are taking priority at this stage.

That includes Fabinho and Alisson Becker, who are viewed, informally, as first in the queue upon their return from Copa America duty in the next couple of weeks.

Virgil van Dijk, Mohamed Salah, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson are also in line for discussions as the club look to keep the core of their squad together for the next chapter of the Klopp era.

Do you want an exclusive pre-season Liverpool preview - both in your inbox and through your letterbox? Head over here to find out more and secure your copy.

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