The Sports Guru
Curtis Jones looked destined to leave Liverpool this summer, a boyhood fan squeezed out of his own club's plans. Andoni Iraola has other ideas. This covers the third Inter Milan bid Liverpool have just turned down, what Iraola actually said about Jones, and why two other players discarded before the new head coach arrived are also getting a second look.
Curtis Jones has been handed an unlikely route back into Liverpool's plans, with new head coach Andoni Iraola ready to reintegrate the midfielder and Liverpool rejecting a third and final bid from Inter Milan worth £27million, according to TeamTalk. Jones, a boyhood Liverpool fan who has never played for another club, looked set for an emotional exit under Arne Slot with his contract entering its final 12 months. Iraola's arrival has changed the calculation.
What changed under Iraola
Slot's final season delivered a tepid defence of the Premier League title he had won at a canter the year before, and Jones was among the players who fell out of his plans along the way. Iraola, appointed as Slot's successor on a two-year deal this summer, has been open about wanting to overhaul Liverpool's midfield to suit a higher-energy, higher-intensity style, and rather than treating that as bad news for Jones, he has made the 25-year-old part of the plan. Speaking to the Liverpool Echo, Iraola said: "I rate Curtis very highly. For me, he is a great, great player, and I hope he can continue with us and continue performing the way he has been performing. It's very important that he's Scouse, that he's from here. I also like the personality." He went further on a possible new deal: "I hope we can keep him, not only for this year but for more time."
Inter's third bid, and a valuation gap that has not quite closed
Inter Milan, the reigning Serie A champions, had two earlier bids for Jones knocked back this summer before returning with a third worth £27million, roughly €31.7million or $36million. TeamTalk reports that figure comes significantly closer to Liverpool's own £30million valuation of the player than Inter's previous offers, yet it was still rejected outright. The gap has narrowed considerably from where the two clubs started the summer, but not far enough for Liverpool to do business. The message from Anfield is the same as it has been all along: Jones is no longer for sale, and the possibility of a new contract, once unthinkable, is now on the table.
Elliott and Bajcetic also handed a second chance
Jones is not the only player benefiting from a change of manager. Harvey Elliott spent last season on loan at Aston Villa, where an obligation to buy would have kicked in had he made ten starts. Unai Emery never gave him the chance, restricting him to nine, and Elliott returned to Anfield with his Liverpool future looking similarly bleak. Iraola has been encouraging about what he has seen since: "Harvey is here with us; he has come also; I have seen him with this eagerness of showing himself, getting himself ready again. He will have a chance during the pre-season. We will need him, and it's a good sign he came one week earlier." Stefan Bajcetic, another player cast aside before Iraola's arrival, is reported to be in line for a similar fresh start, though without the same detail attached yet.
Verdict: a new manager, and suddenly three careers look different
None of this happened because Jones, Elliott or Bajcetic got dramatically better over the summer. It happened because the person judging them changed. Slot's midfield plans had no obvious room for Jones, Emery's Villa side had no real room for Elliott, and now Iraola has looked at both and seen something worth keeping, which is as much a story about a new head coach stamping his own read on a squad as it is about any individual player's form. Inter still want Jones, and a £27million bid getting turned down does not end their interest, but Iraola's public tribute makes clear which way Liverpool intend to push this. A boyhood fan who looked halfway out of the door in May could be signing an extension by the time pre-season is over.
Frequently Asked Questions
Inter Milan's third bid of £27million came closer to Liverpool's own valuation of around £30million but was still rejected. New head coach Andoni Iraola wants to keep Jones as part of his midfield plans and has praised him publicly.
Iraola has said he hopes to keep Jones "not only for this year but for more time," a strong hint at fresh terms, though no contract has been confirmed. Jones was entering the final 12 months of his existing deal.
Jones fell out of favour under previous head coach Arne Slot, whose final season saw a weak defence of Liverpool's Premier League title. With his contract entering its final year, an exit looked likely before Iraola's arrival changed his outlook.
Harvey Elliott, who made only nine starts on loan at Aston Villa last season, and Stefan Bajcetic have also been mentioned by Iraola as players who could feature more under the new head coach.
Sources: TeamTalk, with comments to the Liverpool Echo.
