Liverpool in ‘contact’ with Bundesliga star as Everton & Crystal Palace target £25m defender

It’s once again time for our regular morning round-up of the biggest new Premier League transfer rumours which you might have missed over the past 24 hours, and today’s column kicks off with a story which may interest any Liverpool fans who happen to be reading.

According to Sky Sport Germany, there has been “recent contact” between the Reds and the representatives of Borussia Dortmund Felix Nmecha, who now appears to be one of three names on their shortlist as they search for a new midfielder.

The 25-year-old Nmecha is apparently under consideration alongside Bournemouth’s Alex Scott and Monaco’s Lamine Camara, who nearly joined Chelsea at the end of the summer transfer window. All three are apparently viewed as “top candidates” for a transfer in the near future.

It doesn’t sound as though talks with Nmecha’s agents have gone very far and it’s said that a transfer bid is “not currently in the works,” which suggests that either the price was too high for Liverpool’s tastes or that they simply haven’t made their mind up about who to buy yet. There’s no speculation about how much Nmecha, who is under contract until 2030, might cost.

The 3AM Verdict: Nmecha was heavily linked with Manchester United over the summer but having only just signed a new deal with Dortmund back in March, it never looked likely that he would leave – and we doubt anything changes this side of the next transfer deadline. Liverpool may well have done some due diligence, but he’s unlikely to go anywhere until next summer. Scott and Camara will be far easier to get hold of in January.

Everton & Crystal Palace in race for Serie A star

Over to a story from Swiss outlet 4-4-2 now, who claim that Lecce centre-back Tiago Gabriel is set for an “imminent” move to a bigger club – with Premier League pair Everton and Crystal Palace already having “expressed interest” in the 21-year-old.

They face an uphill battle, however, because some of Serie A’s biggest sides are keen to sign the Portuguese defender as well. AC Milan and Roma are both cited as admirers of the young defender’s talents, with Milan even said to have initiated talks with Gabriel’s representatives already.

Apparently Lecce will demand a transfer fee in the region of €25-30m (up to around £25m), although a January deal is considered to be “unlikely but not impossible” given that the defender only signed a new contract with Lecce in the last few months. Apparently no concrete bids have arrived as yet.

The 3AM Verdict: Tiago Gabriel garnered a lot of attention over the summer as a result of an impressive start to life in senior football and we wouldn’t be surprised to see several Premier League sides make offers in the future. A January move does seem rather unlikely, however, and it’s worth noting that the author of this piece, Ekrem Konur, isn’t a source we view as being trustworthy.

Arsenal aiming to poach Bayern Munich talent

Let’s wrap things up with a story involving Arsenal which comes courtesy of TEAMtalk – they allege that the Gunners are “keeping close tabs” on 17-year-old Bayern Munich goalkeeper Leonard Prescott and are “considering a move” for the highly-rated young player.

The American-born Prescott, who plays age group football for Germany, has spent time with Bayern’s first-team squad already but hasn’t yet made his debut, and with his contract up at the end of the season it’s suggested that he’s casting around in the hope of finding a better pathway towards senior football.

Several other sides are said to be keeping an eye on the situation, with Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and Juventus all named as teams who could make an offer for the teenager in the coming months. It’s suggested that Arsenal could move on from the 31-year-old David Raya in a timeframe which suits Prescott.

The 3AM Verdict: The crux of all this is that Bayern already have the 23-year-old Jonas Urbig readied as Manuel Neuer’s long-term replacement, and that’s said to be worrying the talented Prescott. Whether that makes a move to Arsenal – or any other given team – likely is hard to say, and it’s not a situation that will get resolved this side of next summer.