Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers is edging closer to making Swansea City’s Joe Allen his second signing of the summer by triggering a £15 million release clause in the midfielder’s contract.
Details of the clause in the 22-year-old’s contract emerged in The Daily Telegraph this morning, whereby if any club from an elite five of Liverpool, Manchester United, Manchester City, Arsenal or Chelsea meet the valuation of the Welsh midfielder, Swansea are contractually bound to let the player leave.
Strangely, Allen’s contract also stipulates that any other club outside of this quintet can make a bid lower than the £15 million valuation, creating an open market where anyone can pursue the player.
Liverpool would appear to be firm favourites in the race to sign Allen, who is currently with Team GB as they prepare for their group stage opener with Senegal. Rodgers has expressed his desire to make Allen, his former player at Swansea City, a central figure in his Liverpool revolution, conceding last week that if any club made a move for the midfielder before Liverpool, then they would have to make a bid.
Following Kenny Dalglish’s extravagant spending last season, Rodgers has been told to operate under a far more prudent budget, which has seen negotiations for new signings taken in a more meticulous fashion, and the swift departures of high-earners, such as Maxi Rodriguez and Dirk Kuyt, who did not figure in the Northern Irishman’s plans.
Clint Dempsey is another Liverpool target alongside Joe Allen, as Rodgers seeks to implement his sleek passing game that earned so him so many admirers during his time at Swansea. Should they complete the move, the Welsh midfielder would be Liverpool’s second signing of the summer, following the arrival of 21-year-old Italian forward, Fabio Borini.
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