Inter Pursues Curtis Jones as Liverpool Weighs £30m Exit

Inter are in active talks with Liverpool over a deal for Curtis Jones, with the midfielder increasingly likely to leave Anfield if the Italian champions reach a fee of around £30m.

The 25-year-old, a Liverpool player since the age of nine, has been on Inter’s radar since January and was the subject of a failed €25m offer in June. That bid was swiftly rejected as Liverpool initially valued the England international closer to €40m.

That stance has softened.

Jones is now into the final year of his contract and there is no agreement in sight over an extension, a reality that has dragged Liverpool’s valuation down towards the €35m (£30m) mark Inter are prepared to explore.

Intermediaries acting for the Serie A club made contact with Liverpool in July, putting forward a structure that could see the total package rise to €35m. Formal negotiations between the clubs began on Wednesday. No deal is in place, but if Inter do push their offer up to the suggested €35m, Liverpool are expected to approve Jones’s departure.

Inside the Italian champions’ hierarchy, last week’s agreement to pay Tottenham €35m for Djed Spence has effectively set the ceiling for what they are willing to commit to Jones. The Spence fee is being used as a benchmark as Inter look to add another versatile option in midfield.

For Liverpool, the equation is more emotional.

Jones, capped six times by England, has long been seen as one of the club’s standard-bearers from the academy, a local talent from Toxteth who grew up dreaming of Anfield. Yet he has never fully nailed down a regular starting place and often cut a frustrated figure last season under Arne Slot, unable to turn promising spells into a permanent spot in the XI.

New head coach Andoni Iraola, Slot’s successor, made a point at his unveiling of stressing how important it was to keep Jones and maintain a strong local identity in his squad. That message resonated with supporters who see the midfielder as part of the club’s fabric.

Now sentiment collides with strategy.

Inter’s persistent pursuit, coupled with the looming threat of losing Jones for nothing next summer, has forced Liverpool into a hard-headed assessment of his future. If the Italian champions meet that €35m line, the club may decide that this is the moment to cash in on one of their own.