Alexis Mac Allister's Brighton team-mates reportedly expect him to join Liverpool at the end of the season.
The Argentina midfielder has enjoyed a breakout season for club and country, winning the World Cup in December and delivering a career-best return of 10 goals in all competitions. His form has left him in high demand, with interest from the Premier League and beyond, and the 24-year-old's father Carlos expects him to be on the move this summer.
Liverpool are on the lookout for midfield reinforcements, with Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain among those set for summer departures. With the Reds priced out of a move for Jude Bellingham, Mac Allister is among the leading candidates for an Anfield move as Jurgen Klopp prepares to freshen up his squad.
According to The Mail, there have been 'open' discussions over Mac Allister's future within the Brighton dressing room. Players within Roberto De Zerbi's squad are believed to have spoken amongst themselves about the Argentine potentially sealing a move to Anfield, in a deal not expected to be impacted by Liverpool veteran James Milner's impending move to the Amex Stadium.
"Normally the next [transfer window] will find him playing in another institution, we don't know which one," Carlos Mac Allister told Puro Boca in April. "The talks are just beginning in general, but it is most likely that Alexis will already be playing in another team next July."
Mac Allister isn't the only member of Brighton's squad linked with a summer move. Fellow midfielder Moises Caicedo agreed a new deal on the south coast after coming close to an Arsenal switch in January, but could yet find himself at a new club before the start of next season.
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"I never understood why we constantly talk about things we theoretically cannot have," Liverpool boss Klopp said in April, insisting he was not speaking specifically about Bellingham. "We cannot have six players in the summer for £100m [each], for example. That’s clear.
"You have to realise what you can do and then you have to work with that. How much money do we have available? Then we work with that. That’s the job you have to do.
“We are not children. You ask a five-year-old what they want for Christmas and they tell you, ‘I want a Ferrari.’ You wouldn’t say ‘That’s a good idea’. You would say, ‘No, it’s too expensive and you cannot drive it.’ And that’s how it is. If this kid spends their whole life unhappy because he cannot get a Ferrari then that would be a really sad life."
Mac Allister signed a new deal with Brighton before the World Cup, keeping him on the club's books until 2025. His impressive form for club and country means the continued interest comes as no surprise, but the contract extension should allow the Seagulls to bring in a significant fee.
