Liverpool will have to see off a challenge from Manchester City and two Serie A teams if they want to sign Bournemouth left-back Milos Kerkez, according to The Athletic‘s David Ornstein.

The trusted journalist claims that there is no frontrunner for the Hungarian international’s signature at the moment, but there are at least four clubs involved.

“Let’s see what happens with Milos Kerkez, he’s attracting interest from clubs the size of Liverpool, Manchester City, and on the continent, AC Milan and Napoli as well.”

Manchester United and Chelsea have also been credited with an interest in Kerkez previously but Ornstein’s remarks suggest City are the likeliest to table a bid out of the Reds’ main rivals.

How much will Kerkez cost?

It is believed that Bournemouth would want between £40m to £45m for the 21-year-old. It is a considerable mark-up on the £15.5m that the Cherries paid for the player at the start of last season.

However, Kerkez has been in impressive form this campaign, and it even led Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher to call on his former team to sign him during the January transfer window.

That, of course, didn’t happen, but the Merseysiders may well make a move for the fullback this summer.

Liverpool will be hoping to take advantage of their connections

It should be pointed out that Reds’ sporting director Richard Hughes was the one who signed Kerkez from AZ for Bournemouth in 2023. That means he should already have a good relationship with the defender and his agent.

Another factor is the presence of Dominik Szoboszlai. He is Kerkez’s national team captain and he has previously spoken out to say that the defender is his closest friend in English football. That personal link could prove influential in him making the switch to Anfield.

Click here to see Liverpool’s first team squad for the 2024/25 season