Liverpool hold talks to sign 28-year-old Premier League forward: Reports

Liverpool have reportedly held talks with Crystal Palace star Jean-Philippe Mateta. The Premier League striker is also a target for Manchester United, who are keen on bolstering their attack.

According to a report from Foot Mercato, Liverpool met with the agents of Mateta in Paris. The striker, who is under contract at Crystal Palace until 2027, is their new target after reports previously linked them with Alexander Isak of Newcastle United and Hugo Ekitike of Eintracht Frankfurt.

The Reds are looking to bring in a forward this summer amid uncertainty over Drawin Nunez at the club. The Uruguayan has been linked with an exit, with Napoli keen on luring him to Italy.

Mateta was in fine form last season in the Premier League, scoring 14 times and assisting twice. The 28-year-old also scored three goals in four Carabao Cup matches, but failed to score in any of the five games in Crystal Palace's FA Cup-winning campaign.

Arne Slot is working on adding a striker to his team this summer and sees the Frenchman as the ideal fit. Mateta was keen on leaving Selhurst Park last summer, but the Eagles blocked a transfer as they wanted to keep their top players. He spoke about the decision and admitted that he had accepted it, telling L'Equipe (via BeIN Sports):

"I'm a realistic person: the club didn't want to sell me. Well, I'm moving on and I'm doing everything so that the team obtains better results than last year. And when it's time to ask ourselves these kinds of questions [about the future], we will ask ourselves. In football, you have to adapt quickly, concentrate on the upcoming deadlines and not dwell on the past."

Liverpool relied heavily on Mohamed Salah to score the goals (29) in the Premier League last season, with Luis Diaz and Cody Gakpo chipping in with 13 and 10 goals, respectively. Darwin Nunez managed just five goals, the same as midfielder Alexis Mac Allister, while Diogo Jota, who tragically passed away earlier this month, scored six times for Liverpool last term.

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Manchester United were urged to sign Liverpool target by Paul Merson

Paul Merson was on Sky Sports earlier this year when he urged Manchester United to sign Jean-Philippe Mateta. He claimed that the Liverpool target was ideal for Ruben Amorim as he was better than the options at the club and said (via MEN):

"Man United should get Mateta, that's what they need. He's a strong lad up front, playing at the top of his game, he leads the line, scoring goals now. He runs and works his socks off harder than anyone you know. But they won't because he plays for Palace. And everyone would go: 'What are you buying him for?' But he's 100 times better than anyone Man United have in the front line. Not Amad, he's a young kid – but he's much better than [Rasmus] Hojlund and [Joshua] Zirkzee at the moment."

Manchester United are in the market for a forward after suffering two blows. They were interested in Liam Delap, but the forward opted to join Chelsea, while reports suggested they were keen on Viktor Gyokeres, who has now agreed terms with Arsenal.

Edited by Nived Zenith