David Alaba’s demands of a £260,000-a-week contract mean Barcelona have been priced out of a deal for the reported Liverpool target, according to Sport.
They may be obscene sums to you and I but Alaba, a nine-time Bundesliga champion and two-time treble winner, has earned the right to sit alongside the most highly paid footballers on the planet.
And with his contract due to expire in the summer, the Bayern Munich superstar knows the power lies in his own hands.
Alaba is able to demand eye-watering wages as there will be no transfer fee required to sign a man set to become a free agent in less than 12 months.
AS reports Juventus, PSG, Manchester City and a Liverpool side that raided Bayern Munich for Thiago Alcantara in September are circling as the left-back turned centre-half continues to turn his nose up at a new contract at the Allianz Arena.
Whether Liverpool would be willing to meet Alaba’s demands, however, is another question altogether.
The six-time Austrian footballer of the year wants £260,000 a week plus bonuses.
That would make him the best-paid player at Anfield by some margin with their current top earner, Mo Salah, taking home £200,000 a week (Spotrac).
AS claims cash-strapped Barcelona, who spent all summer desperately trying to slash their wage bill and letting Ivan Rakitic, Luis Suarez, Arturo Vidal and Rafinha walk away for nothing, can’t afford the sums Alaba is demanding.
Liverpool usually prefer to target young up-and-comers with the potential to improve.
But, as the Premier League champions demonstrated when Thiago became available, they are willing to break that tradition when the opportunity arises.
Speaking this week, Bayern sporting director Hasan Salihamidzic admitted FC Hollywood should start preparing for the departure of one of their A-list superstars (Goal).
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