Nicolo Barella makes transfer stance clear after interest from Liverpool - Reports

Nicolo Barella will reportedly not look to force his way out of Inter Milan this summer amid interest from Liverpool.

The Reds have been rumored to be weighing up a move for Barella by various media outlets this month. However, Gazzetta dello Sport (via the Mirror) has now reported that the midfielder, despite being aware of Jurgen Klopp's interest in him, will not go out of his way to secure a transfer.

Barella, who still has three years left on his deal with Inter, has also been linked with Newcastle United. However, the Independent reported that the Magpies are not willing to pay more than £50 million for him, with the Nerazzurri valuing him at around £80 million.

The Italian, 26, enjoyed an excellent campaign with the Serie A giants last season. Barella featured 52 times across competitions, contributing nine goals and 10 assists from midfield. He helped Inter win the Coppa Italia and Supercoppa Italiana in addition to reaching the UEFA Champions League final.

Barella notably played 35 of his side's 38 league games last term, recording six goals and seven assists. The Liverpool target also completed 85% of his passes while averaging 1.6 key passes, 1.4 tackles and 4.4 successful duels per game.

Most of those numbers dropped in the Champions League, where he completed 82% of his passes and averaged 1.1 key passes and 3.9 successful duels per game. However, his tackles per game went up to 1.9 and he also scored three goals, averaging one every 333 minutes compared to 438 in Serie A.

Overall, Barella has recorded 20 goals and 44 assists in 187 matches for Inter since joining them in 2020, winning the Serie A title, two Coppas and two Supercoppas. He has also made 44 appearances for Italy and was part of their squad that won the UEFA Euro 2020 title.

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Liverpool have already begun their midfield rebuild with more signings expected

Liverpool's interest in Nicolo Barella came to slight shortly after the end of their poor 2022-23 season. The Reds finished a lowly fifth in the Premier League and were eliminated early from the FA Cup, Carabao Cup and UEFA Champions League.

Naby Keita, James Milner and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain will all depart the club when their contracts expire at the end of this month and need to be replaced. Their existing midfield core of Jordan Henderson, Thiago Alcantara and Fabinho isn't getting any younger either.

As a result, Liverpool were expected to undergo a major rebuild this summer. They have already begun that process by letting go of the aforementioned trio and signing Alexis Mac Allister from Brighton & Hove Albion.

Mac Allister, 24, may not be joined by Barella. However, Liverpool have also been linked with OGC Nice midfielder Khephren Thuram and Borussia Monchengladbach's Manu Kone.