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Liverpool defender Sepp van den Berg is set to leave for an unnamed club, with the Reds agreeing a permanent transfer worth over their £20 million price tag.
Van den Berg featured heavily throughout pre-season as Arne Slot ran the rule over his wider squad, but swiftly dropped out of the picture upon the return to Merseyside.
Absent from the final two warmup friendlies at Anfield, the Dutchman then did not travel for the 2-0 win over Ipswich that kicked off the Premier League campaign.
It was known that a number of clubs were interested in signing the 22-year-old either on loan or permanently, but there was no suggestion that any side was close to a deal.
But The Athletic‘s David Ornstein has now revealed that Liverpool are closing on agreeing a transfer worth above their £20 million valuation.
The club involved in talks is as yet unnamed, though Ornstein names Brentford as a likely destination and Sky Germany’s Florian Plettenberg adds that Bayer Leverkusen have made contact with a £25 million fee quoted.
Liverpool have already conducted business with Brentford this summer, with a £27.5 million deal for Fabio Carvalho showing the west London side have money to spend.
Thomas Frank started Ethan Pinnock and Nathan Collins at centre-back in their 2-1 win over Crystal Palace on Sunday, with Ben Mee coming off the bench, but is eager to add further to his options in defence.
Van den Berg will relish a regular starting role at a club in either the Premier League or the Bundesliga, having also been heavily linked with a return to the Eredivisie with PSV Eindhoven.
Stuttgart, Hoffenheim, Mainz, Wolfsburg, Borussia Monchengladbach, Southampton, Feyenoord and Bologna have also been credited with an interest.
Speaking towards the end of Liverpool’s pre-season tour of the United States, Van den Berg described his reported price tag of £20 million as “majorly high” and outlined his aims for the season ahead.
“I spoke with [Arne Slot] on my first day,” he explained.
“He said to me I have to show myself in pre-season. I had my own visions, I want to play. We will see what happens but I am happy here.
“My goal is to play football next year so we will see if it is here or somewhere else.”
Clearly, the valuation was not “majorly high,” and if the deal does go through as now expected, Liverpool’s patient approach will have paid off.
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