Merseyside and Premier League rivals Liverpool and Everton have both been linked with Kerem Demirbay of Bundesliga side Hoffenheim.
Injuries have restricted Kerem Demirbay to just 12 Bundesliga starts this season and probably scuppered his chances of a place in Joachim Low’s Germany squad for the World Cup. But that does not mean he will be denied the chance to leave Hoffenheim for a big move to the Premier League.
And if the Evening Standard is to be believed, the Toffees could get their man for £20 million – possibly far less than they might have expected.
The 24-year-old former Borussia Dortmund youngster had a superb breakthrough season under Julian Nagelsmann at Hoffenheim in 2016/17. He scored six goals and assisted eight more as the village side finished fourth, securing a place in Europe for the first time in their history.
He then starred for Germany at the Confederations Cup, scoring a long-range screamer in the 3-1 group stage win against Cameroon as Low’s experimental side went on to lift the trophy in Russia.
Those performances, however, have attracted interest from other Premier League clubs. Liverpool were reported to be interested by Bild and the Evening Standard claims that Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp, who will know Demirbay form the Bundesliga, is also keen.
As are Arsenal, who reportedly believe he can be turned into a deep-lying central midfielder, perhaps as a long-term replacement for Santi Cazorla.
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