Liverpool and Tottenham Target Andreas Schjelderup in Summer Transfer Window

Liverpool and Tottenham have turned their attention to Norway’s World Cup livewire Andreas Schjelderup, with the Benfica winger emerging as a serious option in a summer window already shaped by big numbers and bigger decisions at Anfield.

Liverpool rebuild the wings

Liverpool have already fired the first shot in their wide-forward rebuild. Victor Munoz is through the door, prised from Newcastle United in a €40million (£34.5m) deal that underlines how urgently the club wants fresh legs on the flanks. He is expected to push Cody Gakpo hard on the left, and cover that side when the Dutchman is used through the middle.

They need him. Mohamed Salah has gone, walking away on a free transfer and leaving a gaping hole on the right. Gakpo, meanwhile, may be asked to spend more time at centre-forward, helping out Alexander Isak until Hugo Ekitike returns from an Achilles injury. The wide areas, once Liverpool’s great strength, are suddenly under reconstruction.

So the search continues. And it now stretches from Leipzig to Lisbon.

Schjelderup on the radar

Reports in Italy from Tuttomercatoweb say Liverpool are tracking Benfica’s Schjelderup, a 22-year-old forward who has forced his way into the conversation with an outstanding club season and a World Cup breakthrough for Norway.

Liverpool are not alone. Tottenham Hotspur are described as “following” the player as well, with Atletico Madrid, AC Milan and Como all hovering in the background. This is not a quiet market.

Schjelderup has just come off a campaign that put him firmly in the shop window: 10 goals and seven assists in 43 games for Benfica, who went unbeaten in the Primeira Liga under Jose Mourinho yet still somehow failed to turn that run into a title. On the international stage, he featured in Norway’s first two World Cup group matches, a sign of how quickly his stock has risen.

Benfica originally paid €14m to bring him in. Now, those close to the situation suggest his value has more than doubled, with a €30m (£26m) figure floated. But the Portuguese newspaper Record went harder on Friday, insisting Benfica will only even listen at €40m or above.

Record also reported that Spurs have accelerated into the race, intensifying the duel with Liverpool. That interest has been echoed by TMW, who frame Schjelderup as one of the more coveted young wingers in Europe this summer.

Diomande saga: rumour checked, reality bites

While Schjelderup’s name gathers momentum, Liverpool’s primary focus remains Yan Diomande at RB Leipzig. The chase has already reached eye-watering territory, and it sparked a fresh swirl of speculation on Thursday.

Reports surfaced that Liverpool had upped their offer from an initial €100m (£86m) to a colossal €116m (£100m) after Leipzig rejected the opening bid. It did not last long. Sky Germany’s Philipp Hinze moved quickly to shut it down, calling the story “not true” and clarifying that “there has not yet been a second offer.”

Inside Anfield, the debate is ongoing. Club officials are weighing up whether to go back in with a new proposal in the region of €116-120m, potentially rising to around £104m. Those numbers would test Leipzig’s resolve. They may still not break it.

Leipzig’s stance is clear. As revealed on June 19, they are holding out for a Bundesliga-record €148m (£128m). They want Diomande to stay at least one more year and are pricing him accordingly.

One profile, two very different price brackets

Liverpool’s preference is obvious. Even with Schjelderup’s emergence, Diomande remains the dream signing. The reasoning is tactical as much as financial.

Schjelderup is, by trade, a left winger. That is exactly where Munoz has just strengthened Liverpool, and where Gakpo can also operate. He offers quality, but he overlaps heavily with what Liverpool have just bought.

Diomande is different. He can operate with equal threat on either flank, a two-sided weapon capable of reshaping Liverpool’s attack in one move. In a squad that has just lost Salah and is juggling roles for Gakpo and Isak, that kind of versatility is gold.

So Liverpool stand at a familiar crossroads: a rising star in Schjelderup at a relatively attainable fee, or an elite, system-defining wide forward in Diomande at a price that would shatter club and league records.

Spurs, sensing opportunity, are pushing into the Schjelderup race with intent. Liverpool, for now, are still staring at Leipzig and a valuation that dares them to blink first.