Takumi Minamino will undergo a medical on Wednesday ahead of his £7.25 million move to Liverpool.
Barring no hitches, the Salzburg midfielder will join the Reds when the transfer window re-opens on January 1, and could make his debut for the club in the FA Cup third-round tie at home to Everton four days later.
Liverpool believe they have pulled off a coup in landing the 24-year-old Japan international, having taken advantage of a release clause in his Salzburg contract.
Minamino had been watched by a host of clubs across Europe, Manchester United among them, but the Reds’ strong relationship with Salzburg, allied to the discovery of that clause, put them in pole position.
Goal revealed last week how Liverpool had tracked the player’s development since his time at Cerezo Osaka in Japan, and sources close to the club expect Minamino to play a significant role in the second half of the season as Jurgen Klopp’s team push for Premier League and Champions League glory.
Liverpool are ready to let Curtis Jones and Rhian Brewster go out on loan in January as they look to secure first-team minutes for their teenage duo. Swansea and Leeds are among the clubs to make enquiries, with the Reds set to meet with at least three interested parties over the weekend.
Herbie Kane is another who could depart, the midfielder having made his first start for the club as part of a much-changed side in Tuesday’s Carabao Cup defeat at Aston Villa.
Kane spent last season with Doncaster, where he was named in the League One team of the year, and has a number of suitors in the Championship, among them Hull and Charlton. The Reds would consider a permanent move for the 22-year-old, though a loan seems likeliest at this stage.
Having played at Villa, Ki-Jana Hoever, Sepp van den Berg and Caoimhin Kelleher have all flown out to Qatar to link up with Klopp’s first-team squad ahead of their Club World Cup semi-final with Monterrey.
Brewster misses the trip due to an ankle injury, while 16-year-old Harvey Elliott, so impressive on Tuesday night, has stayed on Merseyside with the under-23 squad, with Liverpool feeling they have ample cover in attacking areas.
The Reds take on Mexican side Monterrey in the semi-final in Doha on Wednesday, with the winners set to face South American champions Flamengo in Saturday’s final.
