Liverpool decide to back away from pursuit of £52 million-rated target linked with Premier League giants: Reports

Liverpool have reportedly decided to pull out of the transfer race to sign OGC Nice midfielder Khephren Thuram, who has also been linked with a permanent move to Manchester City.

Thuram, 22, has emerged as one of the top performers in the Ligue 1 since joining Nice from Monaco on a free transfer in 2019. Operating at the heart of midfield, he has helped his club achieve two fifth-placed league finishes so far.

A right-footed box-to-box operator blessed with dribbling and tackling, Thuram was linked with Liverpool earlier last month. Nice are willing to offload the Manchester City target for an offer of around £52 million, as per Foot Mercato.

However, according to the Daily Mail, Liverpool have opted to finish their pursuit of Thuram and focus on other midfield targets ahead of next season. They are said to be unwilling to meet Nice's exorbitant asking price for their star.

Overall, Khephren Thuram has registered eight goals and 11 assists in 136 appearances for the Ligue 1 outfit.

The Reds are currently monitoring a host of midfielders as they are keen to refresh their ranks soon. Alexis Mac Allister, Mason Mount, Nicolo Barella, Manuel Ugarte, and Ryan Gravenberch have all emerged on their radar of late.

---

Liverpool told to ditch transfer plan due to 24-year-old's new role

Speaking on talkSPORT, former Liverpool striker Dean Saunders claimed that the Reds should avoid signing a new midfielder due to Trent Alexander-Arnold's recent form in the middle of the park.

Alexander-Arnold, 24, has recently found a new lease on life after being introduced to a transitional midfield role by Jurgen Klopp. He has featured as one of the double pivots in his team's 3-2-2-3 system in their last seven games. The defender has been pivotal to the Reds' recent upturn in form, contributing six assists in the process.

Speaking highly of Alexander-Arnold, Dean Saunders elaborated:

"I honestly think Liverpool don't need to sign a midfield player this summer. I think he [Alexander-Arnold] is better than all the current English midfield players. I think he could play centre of midfield for England and end up becoming captain. He's a brilliant central midfielder; he's like a caged animal waiting – you can tell he's loving it."

Showering more praise on the Reds academy graduate, Saunders continued:

"He can defend in midfield, which is not like defending as a full-back. He's got defensive thoughts which he can track people into the box. His feet are also better than anybody's in the England team, both feet."

So far this campaign, Alexander-Arnold has scored three goals and provided nine assists in 44 overall matches.