Curtis Jones Set for Inter Move as Liverpool Faces Midfield Gamble

Curtis Jones walked into Liverpool’s academy as a nine-year-old with a dream and a swagger. Twenty-five now, he looks set to walk out the front door of Anfield as a Serie A champion-in-waiting.

By this evening, he could be an Inter player.

Transfer specialist Fabrizio Romano has already delivered his trademark “here we go” on X, reporting that Inter and Liverpool have agreed a deal worth €35m (£34.3m) in total. Italian outlets, led by Gianluca Di Marzio and La Gazzetta dello Sport, say the structure is €30m up front with a further €4-5m in add-ons (£30m plus £3.4m–£4.3m). A medical is being lined up. La Gazzetta even claims an “official announcement is expected in the next few hours”.

Liverpool sources are slightly more cautious. The ECHO and James Pearce at The Athletic both say a final agreement is not quite over the line, but “within sight”. The direction of travel is obvious. Barring a late collapse, the last Scouser in the senior squad is leaving.

The Scouser who never quite became the star

Jones’ Liverpool career has always been a contradiction. Never truly a nailed-on starter, yet his possible exit has triggered unease across the fanbase.

Part of that is pure numbers. He covers multiple roles in a squad that already looks thin in key areas. But part of it is identity. A lad from Toxteth who broke through under Jurgen Klopp into one of the great Liverpool sides of the modern era, a rare academy product trusted to mix it with Champions League winners.

He arrived as a maverick 10/winger, all tricks and swagger. Klopp re-wired him into a hard-working, press-resistant No. 8, sacrificing some chaos for control. The end product never fully matched the early hype, yet Jones carved out a niche: three midfield positions covered, a constant competitor for minutes, and last season even a reliable auxiliary right-back in Arne Slot’s final campaign.

Now that versatility is about to belong to Inter.

Liverpool’s midfield: faith or folly?

The obvious question hangs in the air: who replaces him?

The early answer from inside Liverpool circles is stark. According to journalist David Lynch (via Anfield Index), there is “close to zero chance” of the club signing a direct replacement if Jones goes. The plan is to promote 19-year-old Trey Nyoni as fourth-choice central midfielder.

That is a huge show of faith. Or a massive roll of the dice.

Wataru Endo remains the more defensive option. James McConnell’s proposed loan to Preston North End is currently on hold, hinting that Liverpool might yet keep the 21-year-old as extra homegrown depth. Stefan Bajcetic, still working on a separate training programme after his injury issues, has attracted interest from Getafe and is unlikely to be a factor in the immediate term.

Behind them, the defensive cover is being reimagined. New loanee Ronald Araujo filled in at right-back for Barcelona six times last season and is seen as a strong one-v-one defender out wide. Jeremy Jacquet and Joe Gomez can also slide across to protect Jeremie Frimpong in Conor Bradley’s absence. Calvin Ramsay remains at the club despite loan chatter.

Put bluntly, Liverpool are trying to solve a midfield problem with internal promotion and defensive flexibility. The homegrown quota only tightens the squeeze. With several non-homegrown players already at risk of missing out on the Champions League squad, replacing Jones with an overseas signing would create a new headache.

Homegrown alternatives such as Adam Wharton – who sparked social media chatter after winning an eBay auction for a signed Steven Gerrard Istanbul 2005 shirt – have either been priced out or deemed a poor fit for Andoni Iraola’s plans.

Sky Sports’ Vinny O’Connor has argued that “you would expect a replacement to be brought in” if Jones leaves. Right now, that expectation is not backed up by the briefings. Affordable, suitable options are scarce, and Liverpool look prepared to enter the season weaker in a key area than they finished the last one.

Quansah clause: a mistake that might not haunt Liverpool… yet

If you want a warning about what happens when you weaken a title-winning squad, look at the Marc Guehi saga.

Liverpool thought they had their man from Crystal Palace last summer. The deal collapsed late when Steve Parish pulled the plug while Guehi was undergoing his medical. By the time Manchester City picked him up in January for less than Liverpool had agreed, the damage was done.

The real misstep, though, was letting Jarell Quansah leave before Guehi was over the line.

Quansah, one of the most promising young centre-backs in the Premier League, joined Bayer Leverkusen for a fee that now looks like a steal. Liverpool failed to replace him and spent most of last season juggling two senior centre-backs, both frequently off form or injured.

The oddity in that deal was the buy-back clause. Liverpool pre-negotiated terms for Quansah to return if they activate the option this summer or next, a clear signal they saw a reunion as more than a remote possibility. Yet his strong form in Germany has been largely ignored this window, even with his buy-back fee reportedly set to drop next year.

Last week, it looked like that hesitation could blow up in Liverpool’s face. Arsenal were widely reported by Sky Sports and The Athletic to be in talks over a move for Quansah, just a year after he left Anfield.

Now the picture has shifted. Sky Sports report Arsenal are “in advanced talks” to sign Ezri Konsa from Aston Villa. Konsa, like Quansah, is right-sided and can cover at right-back. The Gunners have been tracking him for weeks, and their public flirtation with Quansah may well have been a negotiating tactic to nudge Villa’s £60m valuation down.

Whatever the motive, Liverpool look set to dodge the nightmare scenario of Quansah walking into a rival’s defence immediately. The buy-back route stays open. The question is whether they will actually use it.

Liverpool eye Boca’s Aranda as South American focus sharpens

While the senior squad creaks, the recruitment department continues to look further ahead.

After tying up a deal for Colombian attacking midfielder Samuel Martinez earlier in the summer – he will arrive next year – Liverpool are now being linked with another South American prospect: Boca Juniors’ Tomas Aranda.

El Crack Deportivo report that Liverpool are among a clutch of clubs “courting the services” of the 19-year-old, who can operate as an attacking midfielder or off the left. His numbers this season are modest – one goal and three assists in 19 games – but inside Boca he is rated extremely highly. Club president Juan Roman Riquelme, an icon in Aranda’s position, has described him as a “great gem” and, according to the report, “doesn’t want to know” about losing him.

Aranda has a $20m (£14.7m) release clause. El Intransigente suggest that a bid close to that figure could force Boca into a “difficult decision”.

Chelsea are given top billing in both reports, with Liverpool said to be “following” Aranda “closely”. Inter, Arsenal, Bayer Leverkusen, the City Football Group, Parma, Como, plus Brazilian sides Corinthians and Sao Paulo are all credited with interest.

This is the new Liverpool model in action. Go to source. Avoid paying a premium to “middleman” European clubs. Recent moves for Martinez, Mor Talla Ndiaye, Ifeanyi Ndukwe, Rio Ngumoha and Nyoni all fit that pattern.

They have also been linked with Tijuana’s Gilberto Mora, the 17-year-old Mexican playmaker who caught the eye at the World Cup this summer. The theme is clear: stack the pipeline now and hope the next wave hits elite level before the current core fades.

Ndukwe’s next step, Spurs circling Gakpo and Darwin’s Saudi shuffle

There is movement further down the depth chart as well.

Multiple outlets report that Ifeanyi Ndukwe is close to joining Levante on a season-long loan. The Austria Vienna academy product impressed at centre-back in pre-season and now looks set for a crucial year in LaLiga. Playing in a Band 1 domestic league will help him accumulate the points needed for a UK work permit under post-Brexit rules. The ECHO’s Paul Gorst says the deal is not yet complete, but Levante are “understood to be at the front of the queue as things stand”.

At the other end of the market, Spurs are plotting a late-window attacking spree, according to Sky Sports. Cody Gakpo is among their top targets for the left side, with Savinho identified for the opposite flank and a centre-forward – including Omar Marmoush – also on their list. Pedro Neto is viewed as an alternative if Gakpo proves unattainable.

Intriguingly, Spurs are said to be “waiting for Liverpool to sign Bradley Barcola and – potentially – his Paris Saint-Germain team-mate Ibrahim Mbaye before they bid for Gakpo on top of Savinho.” For now, that is a chain reaction built on hypotheticals, but the interest in Gakpo is real and persistent.

Elsewhere in Saudi Arabia, Darwin Nunez is on the move again. Frozen out at Al Hilal, he is set to join Al Diriyah on loan. He had been expected to link up with Mohamed Salah at Trabzonspor, but that switch collapsed, keeping him in the Saudi Pro League for at least another year. Journalist Sacha Tavolieri reports that Al Diriyah’s willingness to cover 75% of Nunez’s wages has been a key factor in getting the deal over the line.

Endrick rumour unpicked

Finally, the daily dose of nonsense – with a twist.

Endrick to Liverpool sounds logical on paper. A young, elite-level forward who can play right wing and through the middle, exactly where Liverpool need more depth. That is where the logic ends.

The rumour’s trail is a mess. Madrid Universal, a Real Madrid fan site, picked up a story from Mundo Deportivo claiming Liverpool had registered interest in either a €65m (£55.7m) permanent deal or a loan. Mundo Deportivo, in turn, pointed to “the English press, specifically Livescore”. Livescore’s piece was simply a republished Anfield Watch article, which itself leaned on an unsourced claim from Fichajes.

Fichajes then added another layer, stating that “Jose Mourinho is counting on the player for the upcoming 2026-27 season, although his future will depend on the attacker's own decision.” That would be interesting if the decision had not already been made. Last week, The Athletic’s Mario Cortegana reported that Endrick, Real Madrid and head coach Mourinho had agreed he would stay and “fight for his place”.

Fichajes even acknowledge that Endrick has maintained his intention to compete for minutes in Madrid, and that “just a few days ago, the situation pointed to him staying” after internal talks. There is no explanation for what has changed. Because nothing has.

And so the rumour goes back on the pile: a story built on a loop of aggregation and wishful thinking rather than any shift in reality.

Liverpool, meanwhile, have real decisions to make. Letting Curtis Jones go without a replacement. Leaving the Quansah clause unused. Trusting teenagers to plug gaps in a squad that wants to compete for the biggest prizes again.

Is this smart, calculated bravery in the market – or a slow unpicking of a title-winning core that will cost them when the games start to bite?