Although it appears that Liverpool have put their interest in Southampton man Shane Long off to one side as they try to broker a deal for highly rated Shakhtar Donetsk attacker Alex Teixeira, the Reds apparently aren’t the only one interested in the Irish striker.
With the likes of Stoke City, Everton, and Norwich City all rumoured to be keeping tabs on the 28-year old, the likelihood of someone making a concrete move for him before the transfer market shuts up shop until the summer seems highly plausible. The Saints may have brought in Queens Park Rangers striker Charlie Austin earlier in the window, but they’re sticking to their guns over Long with boss Ronald Koeman reiterating that the South Coast side aren’t interested in entertaining any offers.
“It’s the same answer,” said the Southampton manager after being asked again whether they’d consider parting ways with the Irishman. “We brought one player in and nobody will go out and I keep that until January 31 because you know my answer,” he continued, sounding a bit perturbed. “Maybe I have to repeat it 80 times more but if you like it, I will do it.”
A section of Reds fans will be relieved not only that the club are looking elsewhere for a player that can put the ball in the back of the net, but that the Saints have been insistent that they’re not willing to make a deal for the 28-year old with many believing that he’s not quite up to snuff. That being said, with Shakhtar demanding that the Anfield outfit up their bid of £24.6mil as they look to squeeze closer to £30mil out of the Merseyside giants, Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp could very well be ringing up Koeman with an offer for Long should negotiations over the pricey Brazilian go down the tubes.
