Hugo Ekitike has the potential to push Liverpool’s summer rebuild over the £250 million mark. After the formalities of his transfer are finished, he will join his new teammates in Asia. In the end, the Reds may spend £79 million on the 23-year-old striker after hammering out a deal with Eintracht Frankfurt for Ekitike.
The Bundesliga team is assured a fee of £69 million, with an additional £10 million in potential add-ons that could be obtained if Etikite and Liverpool both succeed.
The French forward is expected to arrive in the UK on Tuesday for a medical after the deal was reached, and he has been granted permission to travel from Germany to finish his transfer.
The club has kept several employees at home to finalize the signing, including medical staff and sporting director Richard Hughes, even though a sizable group of players and officials are currently in Hong Kong for the first leg of Liverpool’s Far East tour.
Ekitike has already signed a six-year contract with the Reds that will keep him there until the summer of 2031.
It is anticipated that the player will depart to join the Liverpool team in Asia later this week after the formalities are finished. The Reds travel to Japan to play Yokohama F Marinos on Wednesday after playing AC Milan in Hong Kong on Saturday.
The add-ons are reportedly comparable to those agreed upon with Bayer Leverkusen during the club’s record-breaking £116 million signing of Florian Wirtz last month. Although they are thought to be challenging to accomplish, Liverpool would not mind the extra expense given the level of success needed.
After beginning his career at Reims and then moving on to become one of Europe’s most sought-after strikers, Ekitike scored 22 goals in 48 games last season.
Frankfurt was looking for a package closer to €100 million (£86.7 million) after rejecting Newcastle United’s offer of €80 million (£69.4 million) last week with no agreed-upon add-ons.
After the player expressed his desire to join Liverpool, the Magpies left the negotiating table; they have since come to an agreement.
Liverpool is continuing to restructure their forward options this summer with the impending arrival of Ekitike. Darwin Nunez’s departure is becoming more and more likely, Luis Diaz is a top target for Bayern Munich and Barcelona, Federico Chiesa’s future is uncertain due to a minor issue that prevented him from traveling to Asia, teenager Ben Doak is wanted by multiple clubs, and the Reds are also dealing with the tragic death of Diogo Jota earlier this month.
Liverpool will spend more than £250 million during this transfer window as Arne Slot looks to bolster his team in preparation for their Premier League title defense thanks to the £79 million total package for Ekitike.