Liverpool poised to sign Brighton's Alexis Mac Allister; Chelsea pull out of race to sign Ugarte from Sporting, eye Caicedo

Midfielder due for medical once Liverpool pay buyout clause

ANFIELD-BOUND: Brighton and Hove Albion's Alexis Mac Allister

Alexis Mac Allister will sign for Liverpool from Brighton, subject to a medical, after agreeing a contract understood to run to June 2028. Liverpool are to pay the buyout clause in the Argentina international’s contract and will then turn to other targets to continue their midfield rebuild.

Mac Allister is due to have a medical in the next 48 hours. The buyout clause in his contract, signed weeks before he went to the World Cup, is significantly less than the £60m that has been mentioned. That deal has two seasons to run, with an additional one-year option for the club.

Other players on Jürgen Klopp’s list include Manu Koné, the 22-year-old Borussia Mönchengladbach midfielder, and Khéphren Thuram, who is also 22 and plays for Nice. Both have represented France at junior level and Thuram got his first senior cap this year. Celta’s Gabri Veiga, another rising talent, is also admired by Liverpool’s manager but no talks have taken place for the 21-year-old.

Mac Allister, who made his Brighton debut in March 2020, is poised to be Liverpool’s first signing since they appointed Jörg Schmadtke as their sporting director for the summer window. Brighton could also lose Moisés Caicedo, who is a target for several clubs including Chelsea and Arsenal.

Chelsea have pulled out of a deal to sign Manuel Ugarte after Paris Saint-Germain offered the Sporting midfielder a bigger financial package.

Ugarte, whose contract contains a £52m release clause, received a lucrative offer from Chelsea and there was a growing expectation that the Uruguay international would become Mauricio Pochettino’s first signing. Talks were positive and the club appeared to be leading the race.

However PSG have been pushing hard to sign the 22-year-old and the French champions refused to be beaten on wages. Chelsea have responded by withdrawing from talks after deciding they were not willing to pay above the market rate for Ugarte. There is no truth in suggestions they were going to buy a stake in Sporting as part of the deal.

Chelsea, who have spent close to £600m since last summer, are rebuilding and are prioritising reinforcements in midfield. They are expected to move for Brighton’s Moisés Caicedo. The Ecuador international, who is likely to cost at least £80m, is also wanted by Arsenal and Liverpool.

The intention for Chelsea was to buy Caicedo and Ugarte. Chelsea, who need to cut their bloated squad, have given Mateo Kovacic permission to speak to Manchester City. Manchester United have opened talks over Mason Mount and Milan want Ruben Loftus-Cheek. N’Golo Kanté is out of contract this month and is yet to sign an extension. Chelsea, whose midfield includes the £106.8m Enzo Fernández, sold Jorginho to Arsenal in January.

Pochettino could switch his focus to other targets after missing out on Ugarte but a deal to sign Declan Rice is unlikely. Arsenal are favourites to sign the West Ham captain.

Meanwhile Newcastle have suffered a setback in their pursuit of Man City midfielder Kalvin Phillips with the player looking to stay at the Etihad and fight his way into Pep Guardiola's plans next season.

Phillips has only started two Premier games since his £42 million move from Leeds United a year ago. Of his 23 appearances, 16 have come as a substitute.

The 27-year-old was an unused substitute in Saturday’s FA Cup final victory over Manchester United.

Harry Kane has again been linked with a 100m euros move to Spain as Real Madrid goes into the offseason knowing it will need to boost its attack after losing Karim Benzema and other forwards.

Benzema, the team’s top striker in recent seasons and last year’s Ballon d’Or winner, decided this weekend that he will not be back after 14 years at the club. His last game was on Sunday, when he scored in a 1-1 draw against Athletic Bilbao on the final day of the Spanish league.

Also not returning next season are Eden Hazard, Marco Asensio and Mariano Díaz, leaving the club with few options in attack.

“That’s where we have to act and we’re going to do it without any rush,” Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti said. “We have time to do it without any rush. We’re looking for a striker who can score goals and link up well with the others.” 

Ancelotti said the club wants the profile of a striker who can team up well with Vinícius Júnior and Rodrygo, the young Brazilian forwards “who are starting to take a more leading role” in the squad.

“At the moment we only have two forwards, but I’m not worried at all because we have all the time we need to sort it out,” Ancelotti said. “You win games with and without forwards. Forwards are more likely to score, but what makes the difference is when a team plays solidly, compactly, with effort and as a team.” Kane is among the strikers reported to be on the list of candidates to replace Benzema, the 35-year-old Frenchman who is expected to play in Saudi Arabia.

“His departure has come as a surprise to everyone, but we understand it,” Ancelotti said of Benzema. “It was a last-minute decision. Yesterday (Saturday) he trained normally and today (Sunday) he’s taken this decision. We have accepted it.” 

Ancelotti said the club had wanted Asensio to stay but the forward decided it was time to leave. He said Asensio “preferred a change of scenery.” Two other players have received offers to renew their contracts but have yet to decide whether they will stay — defender Nacho and attacking midfielder Dani Ceballos.

Two veteran midfielders have their contracts expiring — Toni Kroos and Luka Modric. Borussia Dortmund midfielder Jude Bellingham is reportedly among the midfielders wanted by Madrid, whose salary bill will go down considerably following the departures of Benzema and others.

Madrid finished the season with three titles — the UEFA Super Cup, Club World Cup and Copa del Rey. But finished second in the Spanish league, 10 points behind champion Barcelona and lost in the semifinals of the Champions League.