Thiago Alcantara is telling teammates he’s on his way to Liverpool.
The Bayern Munich man, 29, is confident of sealing a move to the Premier League champions, according to The Express. His contract runs through this summer.
Hansi Flick wants the center midfielder to stay at the Allianz Arena but contract talks between Bayern and Thiago had broken down and reports Friday linked him with Liverpool. He’d be expected to cost better than $40 million.
[ MORE: Premier League stats ]
There are stronger words this morning, with Bayern said to have “lost all hope” of keeping Thiago.
Yet the Liverpool Echo, an outlet with cozy connections to the Anfield set, says there’s nothing brewing and called the reports “unfounded.”
The 37-times capped Spaniard is set to start Saturday’s German Cup Final versus Bayer Leverkusen, and has won either La Liga (Barcelona) or the Bundesliga every year but one since the 2010-11 campaign.
Thiago would be a bit older than Liverpool’s usual buys but would present terrific experience, technique, and depth for a Reds midfield which will again contend for the Premier League and the Champions League in 2020-21.
But Bayern will certainly be looking to offset their summer shopping, which has started with Leroy Sane, by selling some older players. And Thiago is, right down to age, very close to like-for-like with Georginio Wijnaldum.