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Monaco boss Philippe Clement confirms Takumi Minamino signing

Monaco boss Philippe Clement confirms Takumi Minamino signing
© Reuters
Monaco manager Philippe Clement confirms the imminent arrival of Takumi Minamino from Liverpool in a £15.5m deal.

Monaco manager Philippe Clement has confirmed that his side will welcome Takumi Minamino to the club from Liverpool this summer.

The Japan international has consistently failed to displace the likes of Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane and Luis Diaz in the Reds attack since his arrival from Red Bull Salzburg two-and-a-half years ago.

Minamino was free to leave Liverpool for the right price this summer, and the Japan international was not short of offers from across Europe in spite of his lack of Anfield game time.

Leeds United were thought to be interested in Minamino amid Liverpool's pursuit of Raphinha, but Jurgen Klopp's side are no longer in the race for the Brazilian.

Lazio and Lyon were also linked with a move for the 27-year-old, but Monaco have now agreed a £15.5m deal to bring the attacker to the club for the 2022-23 season.

Liverpool's Takumi Minamino celebrates scoring their first goal against Norwich City in the EFL Cup on September 21, 2021© Reuters

Neither Liverpool nor Monaco have officially announced Minamino's transfer, but it is now only a matter of time before the ex-Salzburg man heads for the Stade Louis II following Clement's recent confirmation.

Les Monegasques defeated sister club Cercle Bruges 1-0 in a friendly on Saturday, after which Clement announced that he was "very happy" to get a deal for Minamino over the line.

"I'm very happy, I've known him for a long time. He was very high on our list. Everyone here is convinced that he has the qualities to bring something to the team," Clement told AFP.

"He already has experience and has done a lot of good things at Salzburg, in a style close to ours, just like at Liverpool where there is a lot of competition. That's why this is an opportunity."

Minamino prepares to leave Liverpool having made 55 appearances for the club in a two-and-a-half year spell, scoring 14 goals and setting up three more in that time.

Monaco coach Philippe Clement on March 19, 2022© Reuters

The 27-year-old hit double figures in goals during the 2021-22 season, scoring four goals in as many EFL Cup appearances and helping himself to a trio of strikes in the FA Cup.

Minamino also hit three goals in the Premier League, but he only started one top-flight game away to Southampton - making a further 10 appearances off the bench and being left out of the squad entirely on 11 occasions.

The former Saints loanee follows Mane and Divock Origi out of the club this summer, with the former joining Bayern Munich for a £35m fee while Origi prepares to join AC Milan as a free agent.

Liverpool have already bolstered their attacking ranks with the signings of Darwin Nunez and Fabio Carvalho, but Salah's future is being called into question again.

The 30-year-old only has 12 months left to run on his Reds contract and could supposedly be sold for a £60m fee if it becomes clear that he will not commit to fresh terms.

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Mohamed Salah in action for Liverpool on April 27, 2022
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