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As though to serve as confirmation that manager Brendan Rodgers spoke the truth when he claimed to have a "real belief" in Fabio Borini and said the 22-year-old striker, currently on loan at Sunderland, was still in Liverpool's plans, news out of Italy confirms that there was at least one permanent deal on the table for Borini.
"His name was under consideration, but Liverpool didn't want to sell him outright and they preferred to keep him in the Premiership," Lazio president Claudio Lotito, who has found himself receiving death threats following what supporters see as a poor showing in the market, told Corriere dello Sport.
His attempts to placate by discussing all the attacking targets the club tried for over the summer but failed to land—from Galatasaray striker Burak Yilmaz to Juventus attacker Fabio Quagliarella to Liverpool's Borini—seem unlikely to calm a rather agitated fanbase.
However, for Liverpool fans wondering whether Rodgers was speaking the truth or simply churning through meaningless boilerplate when he insisted Borini had a future of the club it serves as confirmation. Despite being sent out on loan for the season, Liverpool aren't ready to give up on Fabio Borini turning into a top four-calibre striker just yet.