Summer transfer business tends to take a hiatus in summers featuring major tournaments. Players in the shop window give non-committal interviews stating that right now they're only concentrating on Euro or Copa or the International Champions Cup and they'll consider their future after the tournament concludes, thank you very much.
One player not adhering to this very common approach to the transfer window is young Piotr Zielinski, currently awaiting Poland's opening game of Euro while simultaneously fielding offers from Liverpool and Napoli. What looked like a confirmed deal for Napoli late last week quickly evolved into Zielinski stalling because Liverpool was his true preference, and now reports in the Italian media are backing up an a €12 million bid from the Reds.
Liverpool have offered €12M for Zielinski, he would like to join #LFC. Napoli still in race: talks ongoing with Udinese
— Guglielmo Cannavale (@GugliCannavale) June 10, 2016
Liverpool's bid comes in slightly under Napoli's alleged offer of €14-16 million, which could be the point of contention for Zielinski's club Udinese if they think they can hold out for more from Liverpool knowing this is the Pole's preferred destination. The slight gap between the offers has already prompted some criticism from fans, with all the obligatory jokes about Ian Ayre's negotiation skills.
Zielinski's Poland take on Northern Ireland in the first match of Group C on Sunday evening. Liverpool are unlikely to have confirmed a deal with the player by that time, so it might be prudent to dial down any concerns about the club's negotiating skills and instead consider that transfers involving players with divided attentions might just take longer than usual.