Liverpool have submitted a bid in the region of £15 million for Real Madrid midfielder Asier Illarramendi after seeing their first move knocked back.
This has been reported by Tom Hopkinson of the Sunday People, who claims that the Merseyside outfit initially launched a bid of £10.6 million for the Spanish ace, but it now appears that they have upped their offer, as they go about bringing him to the club sooner rather than later.
Illarramendi, of course, has endured a tricky spell in La Liga, having failed to hold down a regular place in the starting XI under Carlo Ancelotti.
Now, with ex- Reds boss Rafa Benitez in charge at the Bernabeu, it appears that the 25-year-old doesn't feature in his plans, meaning he could head to England's elite division.
In fact, the report goes on to claim that the Real Madrid ace wants to move to Anfield, and is hoping to sort out his future before his current club return to pre-season training on July 10.
There's no doubt about it, if Liverpool really can secure the signature of the Real Madrid man for £15m, then he will prove a fine signing for Reds chief Brendan Rodgers, as he goes in search of improving his squad.
Of course, with the transfer window yet to open, Liverpool have been extremely busy, and they're certainly not hanging around. It's been well documented that the club are in need of replacing Steven Gerrard, and Illarramendi certainly has the ability to become a key player in the middle of the park for the Reds.
He's certainly not Steven Gerrard, but he's exceptionally talented and is still relatively young, so there's no reason why he won't excel at Anfield. £15m seems a good price, too, so Rodgers and Co. must look to try and complete this deal.