Liverpool have decision to make over Aston Villa’s Carney Chukwuemeka price tag

Interested suitors, including Liverpool, will reportedly have to pay £20m if they want to sign Carney Chukwuemeka from Aston Villa this summer.

The talented Villa youngster looks primed to leave Villa Park. The England starlet is out of contract next summer, meaning he will be able to leave for free, with the buyers paying a compensation fee to Villa.

That would likely be nowhere near what Villa think he is worth and so a sale maybe their preferred option.

His emergence last season saw him feature 12 times in the Premier League. But he looked like a player with plenty more experience as he captained the England’s Under-19s to their recent European Championship win.

He scored three times from a central midfield role, including the winning goal in the final against Israel. He was also named in the team of tournament and is clearly bound for greater things.

Villa have put a new contract offer to Chuwuemeka, but the player has yet to put pen to paper. And that prompted Steven Gerrard to leave the player out of his pre-season touring squad to Australia.

Instead the 18-year-old was left at Bodymoor Heath to train with the rest of the youngsters and fringe players.

Whether that will push Chukwuemeka closer to the exit door is open to debate. But Villa have now put a price tag on the player’s head of £20m, according to the Daily Mail.

His developing situation could prompt frenzied interest. PSG, Borussia Dortmund, Barcelona and Newcastle United have all been linked with the player.

Chuwuemeka frustrated

While Liverpool were understood to be big admirers, along with Manchester City and Manchester United, according to The Guardian.

Chuwuemeka, having grown frustrated at his lack of first-team opportunities and left off the club’s tour, seems certain to depart.

His landing point though will depend upon which of the big-name suitors are prepared to invest a £20m fee for a youngster who will move for a compensation sum next summer.

Liverpool have shown a willingness to sign young players in recent years. Fabio Carvalho, 19, has arrived from Fulham this summer, while Harvey Elliott was signed in 2019, aged 16.

Liverpool could not agree a fee with Fulham, offering the Cottagers around £750,000 in compensation, while Fulham originally wanted around £8m.

It’s understood Fulham will receive around £4m once add-ons met for the player.