Liverpool are closely monitoring Bournemouth forward Antoine Semenyo, who has a £65m January release clause. With the Cherries fearing they may be “powerless” to keep him, the Reds could move early as they plan for a mid-season attacking boost.
Antoine Semenyo’s rapidly rising stock has placed him firmly on Liverpool’s radar ahead of what is expected to be a decisive January transfer window at Anfield.
The Bournemouth forward has been one of the standout performers in the Premier League this season, outscored only by Manchester City’s Erling Haaland and drawing interest from several of the division’s elite clubs. Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur have both been linked, while City are also understood to be monitoring his progress.
At 25, Semenyo looks primed to become the next high-value departure from the Vitality Stadium, where Bournemouth’s model of identifying, developing and selling talent continues to attract admiration from across the league.
Last summer’s outgoing business Dean Huijsen to Real Madrid, Milos Kerkez to Liverpool and Illia Zabarnyi to Paris Saint-Germain generated close to £150m, with Dango Ouattara also joining Brentford for around £40m. The club’s ability to trade effectively has become a cornerstone of their long-term planning.
Bournemouth’s leadership see this as part of the attraction for new signings. As Bezbatchenko, a director of Black Knight Football Club Bournemouth’s ownership group told Business of Sport:
“One of the biggest benefits of doing player trading and sending players to those clubs is the knock-on effect it has for our recruitment team.
Because those players see there is pathway for them to realise their potential. So that is the consistent message from Thiago (Pinto, president of football operations) and Simon (Francis, sporting director) when they are talking with getting on phones and on meetings with players.”
And you’re pitching [to] players, just like you do when recruiting a CEO or a VP of finance, you have to do interviews and you’re talking to players and players want to hear what the plan is for them.
What is their pathway? Will you consider a sale of the player if someone comes knocking on the door?
And I think that is the message we are sending. For certain clubs, absolutely. But you have to do it year in and year out and this is the first summer where we’ve seen, not a test, but we’ve taken that step to being a club that is looking to sustain success while trading players and then acquiring new players.”
Semenyo, if he maintains this trajectory, appears destined to be the next major name to make that jump and Liverpool will almost certainly be part of those discussions.
The Reds’ significant summer outlay on Hugo Ekitike, Alexander Isak, Florian Wirtz and Kerkez has yet to translate into the expected on-pitch consistency. But with a challenging season unfolding under Arne Slot, further reinforcements in January are not being ruled out.
Liverpool’s sporting director Richard Hughes knows the player well, having played a role in bringing Semenyo to Bournemouth from Bristol City for around £10m in January 2023. The strong relationship between the clubs only fuels suggestions that the Reds have been closely tracking his development.
According to The Athletic, Bournemouth privately fear they may be “powerless” to stop Semenyo leaving as early as January.
They managed to retain him in the summer, but his new contract includes a release clause widely reported to be £65m that must be activated before a set date, allowing Bournemouth sufficient time to source a replacement.
Any club is able to trigger that clause, but Liverpool believe they are well-placed should a bidding process emerge. With their forward line requiring freshness and Mohamed Salah set to depart for AFCON Semenyo is viewed by many internally as an ideal mid-season addition.
While £65m remains a substantial investment, it increasingly looks reasonable given Semenyo’s form, availability, and Premier League-proven profile.
A January move would not only cover Salah’s temporary absence but also offer Semenyo a six-month bedding-in period before a potential long-term succession plan becomes more concrete.
Liverpool need a spark, and Semenyo’s dynamism may offer exactly that. With the release clause active and interest accelerating, the coming weeks could prove pivotal. Whether Bournemouth can resist or whether Liverpool make their move may define one of the major storylines of the January window.
