Liverpool hero John Barnes has called on his old club to do all they can to secure the signature of Alex Teixeira this month, even if that means going near to Shakhtar Donetsk’s £39m asking price.
The Reds have been heavily aligned with the free-scoring Brazilian attacking midfielder over the course of the last few days, with reports having claimed that a second bid in the region of £28m has been rebuffed by the Ukrainian giants following a surprise opening £24.5m offer last week.
The wealthy Eastern European club are thought to be holding out for a figure of around £39m for their man, and are reluctant to sell for less given that he’s netted 22 goals in just 15 league matches this season.
And speaking exclusively to FootballFanCast, TitanBet brand ambassador, and former Anfield star, Barnes said that, although he would be wary of going as high as Shakhtar are asking, he would like to see the cash splashed before the transfer deadline to secure Teixeria:
“I’ve seen him regularly in the Champions League, so I’ve seen what he can do and he’s a very, very good player. He’s quick and he’s skillful and that’s what Liverpool need.
“If he was someone you think would be coming in to fill in for the rest of the season then come the summer Liverpool would look to get better players than him I would say ‘no, don’t do it’, because you’re just wasting £39m.
“But, I think he could be one that could be here to be a main player in the team for the next four or five years.
“It’s not a question of [paying] whatever it takes because they [Shakhtar] could say £50m, £60m, but if they say that’s what it takes [£39m] then I would negotiate with that figure.
“I wouldn’t necessarily go up to that figure, I think they’d probably take slightly less, but I’d try as hard as I could.”
Any deal now for Teixeira is likely to be worth in the same region as the club record £35m Liverpool paid Newcastle for Andy Carroll in 2011.
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