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Following reports late last week that Liverpool had launched a bid for Shakhtar Donetsk attacker Alex Teixeira, reports in Ukraine suggest the 26-year-old Brazilian has agreed personal terms with his potential new club. The closing of any deal, though, will have to wait, as the two clubs still remain some distance apart on valuation.
Liverpool’s latest offer is believed to stand at around €38M (£29M) plus add-ons. Those add-ons could potentially bring his eventual fee close to the €50M Shakhtar are believed to be seeking, but they would be heavily dependant on Teixeira being able to deliver a similar return for Liverpool in the Premier League as he has in Ukraine.
The versatile attacker, who is at his best playing centrally off a striker, has scored 26 goals and added five assists in 26 games across all competitions this season, including three goals and an assist in six Champions League appearances. He began his career on the wing, but in the last two seasons in a central role has 48 goals in 63 games.
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Reports in Ukraine of a the player agreeing to personal terms emerged at the same time as Sky in England claimed the player’s preferred destination was Liverpool, and that he counted current Liverpool players Lucas Leiva and Philippe Coutinho amongst his best friends in the game. Teixeira began his career with Coutinho at Vasco da Gama.
There were further reports, all claiming to come from a member of Shakhtar’s staff, that Teixeira is pushing hard for a move while what he believes is a good and fair offer is on the table. If Shakhtar are unreasonable in their approach to negotiations, he may even have suggested his only possible recourse will be to put in unmotivated performances.
A player threatening to strike if a deal doesn’t go through might raise concerns if he were in one of Europe’s bigger leagues, but given the tumultuous state of football in Ukraine and Liverpool’s past experiences trying to deal with their oligarch owners, Teixeira’s determination to get a deal done could be key.