Liverpool beat Bayern Munich to €25m January signing, with star to get second crack at the Premier League

Steve Pearson 16 Oct 2024 7:31 PM

Liverpool are chasing Sevilla ace Loic Bade as Van Dijk's eventual successor

A stunning report has claimed Liverpool will sign their long-term successor to Virgil van Dijk in January, with the €25m-rated star to get a second chance in the Premier League.

According to Spanish outlet TodoFichajes, Sevilla ‘closes the sale of [Loic] Bade’ to Liverpool. Negotiations between the two clubs were labelled ‘advanced’, with the report adding ‘Loic Bade, who, if nothing goes wrong, will head to Liverpool in the winter transfer market.’ It was also claimed Bayern Munich made a late attempt to hijack the move, though did not succeed.

Bade, 24, is a right-footed centre-back who Liverpool have reportedly identified as their long-term successor to captain Virgil van Dijk.

TEAMtalk understands Liverpool are confident they’ll thrash out a contract extension with the Dutchman, though that seemingly won’t stop the club from signing his successor whilst he’s still in situ, just as they did in the goalkeeping department with Alisson Becker and Giorgi Mamardashvili.

Bade’s deal with Sevilla contains a release clause worth €60m. However, the report states Liverpool won’t have to pay even half of that amount. The report added: ‘the operation will finally be closed for a figure close to €25m.’

Bade has spent time in the Premier League before, though you can be forgiven but not remembering his stint. Indeed, the Frenchman was loaned to Nottingham Forest for the first half of the 2022/23 season, though never made a single appearance for the club and rarely made their matchday squads.

The centre-back spent the second half of that campaign at Sevilla before joining the Spanish side outright in the summer of 2023. If the report is accurate, Bade’s next step is Anfield.

Loic Bade: Liverpool’s next signing?

Numerous other outlets in Spain have reported on Liverpool’s interest in Bade. The latest report clearly takes the story on several steps, though they’re not known for being particularly reliable when it comes to transfer news.

Nonetheless, what is clear is Bade is on Liverpool’s radar, with Mundo Deportivo confirming as much earlier this week.

Furthermore, Liverpool’s sporting director, Richard Hughes, was stated to have been showing ‘persistent interest’ in signing Bade.

AS, meanwhile, claimed Bade had offers to join Stuttgart or Roma over the summer but elected to remain with Sevilla.

PSG and Bayern Munich have also been credited with interest, while AS stated Sevilla would sell for ‘considerably less’ than the €60m release fee. The last part tallies with the new claims a deal will be struck for roughly €25m.

Latest Liverpool news

In other news, Liverpool have been backed to make a renewed push to sign Martin Zubimendi if the midfielder pushes to leave Real Sociedad in January.

Elsewhere, Liverpool have been linked with moving for Inter Milan and Italy ace, Nicolo Barella, instead of Zubimendi.

Finally, TEAMtalk has been told Liverpool are ‘calm and confident’ about the prospect of tying Trent Alexander-Arnold and Van Dijk down to new deals.

IN FOCUS – Loic Bade career timeline

January 2020 – After coming through the academy at Le Havre, Bade makes his senior debut at the age of 19 in a Ligue 2 win against Niort.
June 2020 – The centre-back makes the step up to Ligue 1 and joins Lens on a free transfer following the expiration of his Le Havre contract.
July 2021 – His impressive performances in the 2020/21 season attract interest from a number of clubs but Rennes win the race for his signature after paying a €17million fee.
November 2021 – Bade scores his first senior goal as Rennes beat Mura 1-0 in the group stages of the UEFA Europa Conference League.
September 2022 – He joins Nottingham Forest on a season-long loan deal but fails to make a single first-team appearance for the Premier League side.
January 2023 – His loan deal at Forest is terminated and he joins Sevilla on an initial six-month loan deal, which includes a €12million option to buy.
April 2023 – He scores in back-to-back games, netting in a 2-0 win over Valencia in La Liga before helping Sevilla complete a 3-0 win over Manchester United in the Europa League quarter-final.
May 2023 – The defender plays the full 120 minutes against Roma in the Europa League final as Sevilla beat the Serie A side on penalties. Sevilla then trigger the option to make his move permanent.
August 2024 – Balde plays for France Under-23s at the Paris Olympics and helps them reach the final, although they lose 5-3 against Spain after extra-time.
September 2024 – The 24-year-old receives his first call-up to the senior France side, but he has to wait for his debut after picking up an injury.