Giovanni Leoni transfer news: Liverpool agree deal to sign Parma defender
AFNEWS reporter
Aug 14, 2025
Giovanni Leoni transfer news: Liverpool agree deal to sign Parma defender
Liverpool have agreed a deal to sign 18-year-old defender Giovanni Leoni from Parma; Reds will pay a fee of £26m for the defender; Liverpool were targeting defensive reinforcements with Ibrahima Konate entering the final year of his deal at Anfield
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Liverpool have agreed a deal to sign Parma defender Giovanni Leoni.
An agreement was reached late on Wednesday night and the fee for the 18-year-old defender is £26m plus add-ons.
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Leoni now has permission to travel to Liverpool to agree personal terms and undergo a medical, which is expected to begin on Thursday.
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Liverpool saw off competition from elite Italian clubs and Premier League sides, with the player adamant his choice was a move to Arne Slot's side.
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Leoni will also immediately join the first-team set-up for this season, with any suggestion of a loan move completely ruled out.
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Liverpool were targeting reinforcements at centre-back with Ibrahima Konate entering the final year of his deal at Anfield.
What is the latest on Guehi?
It is looking likely that Marc Guehi will stay at Crystal Palace and leave on a free transfer next summer.
Liverpool are still in talks for Palace's captain, but there is a gap in valuation.
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Palace will not let their captain go on the cheap and Liverpool know they can wait until next summer to sign him on a free transfer. The question is whether Liverpool can negotiate a fee now or wait until next year.
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Guehi, meanwhile, is happy to stay at Palace and play in Europe. If Palace were to agree a fee with Liverpool then he would be happy to talk to them but that has not happened.
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Multiple big clubs in the Premier League and across Europe are aware that Guehi may be available as a free agent next summer.
Liverpool's transfer business goes above £300m
Liverpool's £26m deal to Leoni is set to take the Reds' spending above £300m this summer.
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Leoni will be the sixth major signing for Arne Slot's Premier League champions this season - with their business set to come to £321.5m in paid transfer fees so far.
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That fee is currently the third-biggest transfer outlay from a Premier League club in a single window.
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And if Liverpool complete a deal to sign Alexander Isak, which could cost well above £100m - then the Reds could become the biggest summer transfer spenders of all time.
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— AFNEWS reporter