Inter Milan Pursues Curtis Jones: Liverpool's Firm Stance at £35m
Inter Milan have made their move for Curtis Jones. Liverpool’s response has been just as clear: if the Italian champions want the midfielder, they will have to pay full price.
The Serie A side have signalled a willingness to go to around £30m, according to reports, after an earlier offer of £21.75m was swiftly pushed back. Liverpool’s valuation sits higher. Internally, the 25-year-old is regarded as a minimum £35m asset, and there has been no indication of that figure softening.
That gap is not a detail. It is the negotiation.
Inter’s long courtship
Inter’s interest is not a late summer whim. Sporting director Piero Ausilio went on record earlier in the window, confirming Jones as a live target.
“Curtis Jones – we are paying attention to him. We didn’t hide. We understand what the developments will be,” he said, outlining admiration that has now turned into concrete bids.
The admiration is easy to understand. Jones is entering the final year of his Liverpool contract, a situation that often tempts selling clubs into compromise. Inter sense an opportunity, and their latest approach reflects a belief that a deal is there to be done if they push the numbers high enough.
Yet Liverpool are not behaving like a club under pressure. They are listening, but they are not bending.
Iraola’s Liverpool and the value of depth
The backdrop matters. This is not the Liverpool of the recent past, but a squad stepping into a new era under Andoni Iraola, with a fresh tactical blueprint and a demanding schedule ahead.
Competition in midfield is fierce. Dominik Szoboszlai, Alexis Mac Allister, Ryan Gravenberch and Florian Wirtz headline a group that leaves little room for passengers. Jones has often sat just beneath that top tier of starters, the reliable option who can plug gaps, change the tempo and take on different roles without complaint.
Clubs pay for that kind of profile. Homegrown, tactically adaptable, with Premier League and European experience, and still in his prime – it is exactly the blend that skews a valuation upwards. Letting a player like that leave is not simply about the fee received; it is about the cost and difficulty of replacing him in a market where “homegrown” comes with its own premium.
Liverpool know it. Inter know it too. That is why this negotiation is edging around the same central point: how much is that blend really worth?
A squad in motion, but not on sale
Jones’ future is only one thread in a broader summer of reshaping at Anfield. The club are in talks with Paris Saint-Germain over Bradley Barcola and are actively assessing other areas of the squad, aware that a new coach needs the right tools as well as a balanced dressing room.
Interest has not stopped at the senior names. Luke Chambers, Lewis Koumas, Calum Scanlon and Ifeanyi Ndukwe have all drawn attention after encouraging performances on Liverpool’s USA tour. The message is clear: the market is circling around Anfield, from core contributors to emerging prospects.
Yet there is a difference between listening and inviting. Liverpool are open to discussions, but they are not running a clearance sale. Every outgoing has to fit a wider plan.
That is where Jones sits. He is not the headline star, not the first name on the teamsheet, but he embodies something supporters and coaches both value – a local player who understands the club, who has already shown he can be trusted when the stakes rise.
The price of letting go
There is a football logic as well as an emotional one in Liverpool’s stance. Depth wins seasons. With Champions League football returning and Iraola looking to impose his methods quickly, the club cannot afford to strip away too much of its reliable middle tier.
Jones does not need to start every marquee fixture to be central to that idea. He needs to be there when injuries bite, when rotation kicks in, when a game requires control rather than chaos. He has done that job often enough to know its importance, even if it rarely dominates headlines.
If he wants a bigger role elsewhere, that would be understandable. Careers are short, and regular starts are a powerful pull. But from Liverpool’s perspective, any sale has to reflect three hard realities: his quality, his homegrown status and the difficulty – and cost – of finding someone who ticks the same boxes.
At £30m, Inter are testing the waters. At £35m and above, Liverpool might finally have a decision to make.
For now, they are holding the line. Inter are pushing, the clock on Jones’ contract is ticking, and a new manager is reshaping the squad in real time. Something will give eventually – the only question is whether it will be the price, the player, or Liverpool’s resolve.
