Croatian Ace To Undergo Medical On Saturday After Liverpool Agree £16m Fee

The summer transfer window is now open for business and it’s expected to be a busy few weeks as managers strengthen their squads ahead of next season, so we’ll bring you all the latest news and gossip. Today, Liverpool close in on Dejan Lovren.

Dejan Lovren is set to undergo a medical on Merseyside on Saturday after Liverpool agreed an initial £16m deal with Southampton for the defender, according to the Telegraph.

The Reds have been strongly linked with a move for Lovren all summer but a move was proving difficult to pull off as they initially found it tough to persuade Southampton into selling the centre-back.

Reports last month claimed that the Croatian international had handed in a formal transfer request to try and force through the move as he was desperate to play Champions League football next season.

It seems his desire to leave could have forced the Saints into doing a deal as the Telegraph are one of several media outlets who are reporting this evening that the 25-year-old is now heading to Merseyside to undergo a medical and discuss personal terms on Saturday after Liverpool agreed a fee with the South Coast club.

The newspaper suggests that the Reds will pay an initial £16m fee up front, with another £4m in additional add ons, making the transfer potentially worth £20m in total.

If everything goes to plan, Lovren should complete his move this weekend and will become the third player to join Liverpool from Southampton this summer following on from Adam Lallana and Rickie Lambert’s moves last month.

The Telegraph state that ideally, Liverpool would like Lovren to link-up with the rest of the squad over in America this coming week, but logistically it’s proving to be difficult as the club are going to be spending less than 48 hours at their next destinations of Chicago, New York and Charlotte.

Brendan Rodgers has been desperate to bring in another centre-back this summer after seeing his leaky defence arguably cost his side the Premier League title last season, and Lovren will undoubtedly bring some much-needed quality to the back four.

The Croatian international was superb during his debut year in England last season following his move from Lyon, and played a key role in helping Southampton to an impressive eighth-placed finish.

If the move goes through smoothly, Lovren will become Liverpool’s fifth major summer signing and that number could quickly rise to seven with both Loic Remy and Divock Origi understood to have undergone their medicals over in America this week.