Liverpool miss out on 'next William Saliba' as star snubs Premier League for Saudi transfer

Saudi outfit NEOM are close to completing a deal for highly-rated French defender Nathan Zeze with the 20-year-old set to choose the Middle East over a switch to the Premier League.

Liverpool had been keen on Zeze whilst Aston Villa, Everton and Bournemouth also had an interest in the defender, who has drawn comparisons with William Saliba. Zeze came through the ranks at Nantes and has continued to impress potential suitors.

The Sun reports that Bournemouth verbally delivered a £17million offer, but that wasn't enough to tempt Nantes when they tried to land the player back in May. NEOM though look to have won the race for Zeze and he will undergo a medical this week.

The youngster, who has been capped by the French U21 side and played at the Euros this summer, will make a move in a €23m (£19.9m) deal with Nantes landing themselves a 20 percent sell-on clause should Zeze make a move in the future.

Liverpool are weighing up what to do with their defensive options having seen Jarell Quansah leave for Bayer Leverkusen and Joe Gomez depart pre-season early with injury. The long-term future of Ibrahima Konate is also unclear with the player reportedly keen to leave when his contract expires.

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The Reds were linked with Crystal Palace skipper Marc Guehi, but talk of a move to Anfield has cooled. Arne Slot may still look to add a centre-half before the summer is out but looks to have missed out on Zeze with NEOM winning that race.

The Saudi club are well backed and haven't been shy in underlining their ambition. Former Nottingham Forest sporting director Kyriakos Dourekas is now leading the recruitment at the Middle East outfit and they have Said Benrahma and Alexandre Lacazette on their books.

NEOM have just been promoted to the top flight in Saudi Arabia and their remit is on retaining that status whilst also overseeing plans for a new stadium and growing their global identity.

Clubs in Saudi have continued to attack the market and Chelsea's Joao Felix, who only moved to the Blues last summer, is closing in on a move to join Cristiano Ronaldo at Al-Nassr. The Portuguese forward is expected to sign for just over £40m. Theo Hernandez is another name to head to the Middle East with the Frenchman leaving AC Milan to join Al Hilal.

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