Inter Milan Pursues Curtis Jones with £30m Offer
Inter Milan have come back for Curtis Jones, and this time they are much closer to Liverpool’s line in the sand.
The Serie A champions have tabled a proposal worth £30 million ($40.5m) for the midfielder, reopening talks with Liverpool after an earlier offer of around £21m ($28.3m) was brushed aside last month. That first bid barely caused a ripple at Anfield. This one at least forces a conversation.
Liverpool’s stance, though, has not shifted. The club value Jones at £35m ($47.2m) and have been reluctant to budge, even with the 23-year-old entering the final year of his contract. For now, that £5m gap is the only thing stopping a boyhood Red from swapping Merseyside for Milan.
Inter won’t go away
Inter’s interest has been persistent rather than opportunistic. They first made contact back in January, sensing a potential opening as Jones searched for more regular starts. Liverpool’s response then was blunt: no major departures so late in the winter window.
Since then, Inter’s intermediaries have stayed in the background, waiting for the moment to push again. With the new season edging closer and Jones’s contract ticking down, they have moved. Agents working on Inter’s behalf have re-established dialogue with Liverpool, signalling a clear willingness to raise their offer and test the resolve of the Premier League club.
The pressure is subtle, but it is there. A player with just 12 months left on his deal, a sizeable fee on the table, and a club trying to balance ambition with squad stability.
Liverpool hold the line
Inside Anfield, the message has been consistent. Liverpool want £35m or they keep him.
The midfielder, born in the city centre and steeped in the club’s culture, has made 228 appearances since his debut in January 2019. Those numbers underline his value, even if he has not always been a nailed-on starter. Jones has been pushing for more guaranteed first-team minutes, a desire that has not gone unnoticed across Europe, but Liverpool’s hierarchy have so far resisted the idea of a cut-price exit.
Sporting director Richard Hughes and head coach Andoni Iraola now sit at the heart of the decision. Do they cash in on a homegrown asset who could walk away for nothing in a year, or do they double down on a player they believe can be central to the new era?
For Iraola, the answer has been clear in public. Speaking earlier this month, he underlined exactly how highly he rates Jones and made no attempt to hide his wish to keep him and tie him to a new contract on Merseyside.
“I rate Curtis very highly. For me he is a great, great player and I hope he can continue with us and continue performing the way he has been performing,” Iraola said, stressing the importance of Jones’s local roots and character. “It’s very important that he’s scouse, that he’s from here. I also like the personality. From the outside at least he looks like a player with good character and I hope we can keep him, not only for this year but for more time.”
Those are not the words of a coach preparing to wave a player through the exit. They are the words of a manager who sees Jones as part of the spine, not the surplus.
A tug-of-war over value and identity
This is no ordinary transfer call for Liverpool. Losing a squad player is one thing; losing a scouse midfielder who has carried the academy-to-first-team pathway on his shoulders is another.
Jones stands at a crossroads. At 23, he has experience, numbers, and medals, but he still craves the rhythm of starting every week. Inter can offer a fresh stage, Champions League football, and a leading role in Simone Inzaghi’s midfield rotation. Liverpool can offer familiarity, status in the dressing room, and the chance to grow into a central figure under a new coach.
The clock, though, will not slow down. With one year left on his deal, each passing week increases the risk that Liverpool face next summer’s window with a player free to negotiate elsewhere. Inter know it. Liverpool know it.
For now, the Italian club are on £30m, Liverpool are on £35m, and Curtis Jones is caught in the middle.
Something has to give.
