Real Madrid president Florentino Perez has claimed that his club beat Liverpool to the signing of Aurelien Tchouameni.
The Reds did hold an interest in the France international while he was at Monaco. However, they were aware that Tchouameni was always more likely to move to Madrid.
And last weekend the La Liga champions did confirm the arrival of Tchouameni in a deal thought to be worth up to £85million. Days later and Liverpool announced a huge transfer of their own with Darwin Nunez joining from Benfica in a deal worth £64.1m potentially rising to £85.5m with add-ons.
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Speaking about the signing of Tchouameni, Perez confirmed that Liverpool were in the hunt for his signature and claimed that Kylian Mbappe, who recently rejected a move to Madrid, was trying to tempt his France team-mate to Paris Saint-Germain.
"Tchouameni deal? Someone told him he had to go at Paris Saint-Germain... yes, Mbappé was trying, but this is normal,” stated Perez
"PSG and Liverpool wanted Tchouameni, it's normal to have competition. He only wanted Real Madrid."
Despite missing out on Tchouameni, Anfield insiders have indicated that no other midfielders will be targeted this summer.
Borussia Dortmund’s Jude Bellingham has been mentioned, but the club believe the additions of Fabio Carvalho, Darwin Nunez and the soon-to-be confirmed Calvin Ramsay mean the Reds have signed exactly what they felt they needed and wanted.
