Liverpool reach Jeremy Jacquet agreement as they take huge step in bid to hijack Chelsea in record move

Liverpool have reached a verbal agreement with Rennes over a £55million deal, plus £5m in add-ons, for defender Jeremy Jacquet.

Jacquet is set for his medical with Liverpool on Monday, but the Reds will only sign him in the summer.

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Rennes were adamant that Jacquet won’t leave before deadline day on Monday with Chelsea previously eager to recruit him during this window.

And that allowed Liverpool to swoop in and pinch the France Under-21 star off their Premier League rivals.

Rennes demanded a club-record sale in order to cash in on the youngster, trumping the £52m they received from Manchester City for winger Jeremy Doku in 2023.

And Liverpool have granted Rennes their wish with a verbal agreement over £55m deal, with a further £5m add-ons, being reached.

talkSPORT understands Liverpool opened talks with Rennes three weeks ago and were aggressive in their push to pre-agree a deal for Jacquet.

Meanwhile, Chelsea’s perspective on the Jacquet situation changed in the last 48 hours as they eventually backed out of the deal.

The Blues knew the fee Rennes wanted and didn’t consider personal terms with the player to be an issue.

However, Mamadou Sarr is set to return from his loan at Strasbourg, while Chelsea also have no desire to hamper young defender Josh Acheampong’s pathway or to sell him.

Liverpool’s centre-back issues

Liverpool are in the market for a new centre-back having missed out on Marc Guehi last summer.

The Reds agreed a fee with Crystal Palace for the centre-back but were left frustrated as the Eagles pulled the plug on the deal at the 11th hour on deadline day in September having failed to sign a replacement.

The Merseyside giants did sign teenager Giovanni Leoni, who suffered a season-ending ACL injury against Southampton earlier in the season.

Arne Slot’s side were again linked with a move for Guehi this month but missed out on the 25-year-old to rivals Manchester City.

Chelsea, too, had identified the defence as an area in need of improvement last summer after Levi Colwill suffered an ACL injury of his own on the eve of the season.

Chelsea’s defensive blues

Enzo Maresca hoped that the club to bring in a new centre-back to ease the England international’s absence.

The Italian’s replacement at Stamford Bridge, Liam Rosenior, also pushed for the club to bring in another defender, with Jacquet a top target.

Chelsea also elected to recall young Argentine defender Aaron Anselmino from his loan spell at Borussia Dortmund.

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