New “No. 1 transfer Priority” Revealed as Liverpool  pull out of Jude Bellingham race

Wednesday’s Liverpool news roundup covers all the fallout from last night’s Jude Bellingham reports and Luis Diaz’s latest steps towards a full recovery.

The new “Priority No. 1” in midfield

In the wake of Liverpool’s turnaround in their interest in Bellingham, Mason Mount emerged as the new “No. 1 priority”.

So says Bobby Vincent of football.london, who also says there is “serious interest” in Mount’s team-mate Conor Gallagher.

It’s not the first time Mount and Gallagher have been hyped with a move to Anfield, of course, but it’s clear Liverpool have been reshuffling their roster.

Away from the Chelsea pair, Merseyside journalists have expressed strong interest in Brighton duo Moises Caicedo and Alexis Mac Allister, Wolves’ Matheus Nunes and Bayern Munich’s Ryan Gravenberch.

GOAL’s Neil Jones has also named Nicolo Barella (Inter), Teun Koopmeiners (Atalanta) and Luka Sucic (Salzburg) as options. The Mail’s Dominic King has also confirmed his interest in Fulham’s Joao Palhinha, while Liverpool Echo’s Ian Doyle has contacted Bristol City youngster Alex Scott.

Bellingham at the latest

Man City are on of the teams who allegedly ‘inflated’ Bellingham’s price

Jurgen Klopp was said to be ‘100% involved’ in Liverpool’s decision to withdraw from negotiations with Borussia Dortmund

Fenway Sports Group came under fire when local reporters published the story, but some fans have a theory behind the leaks

More news from the planet Liverpool

Luis Diaz was part of a 29-man practice squad today as he neared a full return to action

Steven Gerrard has admitted turning down various ‘exciting’ offers from clubs and international teams to return to management

Sadio Manes Bayern Munich continued to struggle last night as his side suffered a 3-0 defeat at Man City

Last conversation by the way

The Man United sale has entered a third round of bidding as the Glazer family seek to speed up the process (BBC)

Sporting director Filippo Giraldi has resigned from Nottingham Forest amid questions over the club’s January termination (The Athletic)

Marcus Rashford is set to miss ‘a few games’ with a muscle injury picked up in the 2-0 win over Everton at Old Trafford (Sky Sports).

Tweet of the day and game of the night

A feast for the eyes! Luis Diaz smiles during training as he continues his progress towards a potential comeback against Leeds.
It can be difficult to watch Champions League football when we’re not involved, but Chelsea travel to Real Madrid for their quarter-final first leg tonight if you want to keep an eye on the action.

Also.. 

Jude Bellingham’s decision adds to Liverpool’s summer transfer pressure, as Steven Gerrard made admission

Here’s the morning news on Liverpool FC, as the Reds enter a post-Jude Bellingham transfer plan and what is Steven Gerrard up to?

With the Reds taking no immediate interest in Jude Bellingham, it’s time for Liverpool FC headlines on Wednesday 12 April.
FSG have only one card to play for Liverpool after giving up Jude Bellingham

Last summer, Liverpool identified Aurelien Tchouameni as the player to accelerate the evolution of their midfield. But when the Frenchman chose to go to Real Madrid instead, the Reds chose not to look elsewhere: it was the right signing or nothing.

This summer, Liverpool identified Jude Bellingham as the player to accelerate the evolution of their midfield. Now, however, the Reds have decided to back out of the chase – instead of the right signing, they intend to make several more.

Of course, things are rarely so black and white. But the reversal of approach taken by Jurgen Klopp and the Liverpool recruitment team will not go unnoticed by fans, who furiously debated the decision to essentially abandon any attempt to lure Bellingham away from Borussia Dortmund during the next transfer window.

The 19-year-old England international cost over £100m and would never come cheap. However, the general consensus – influenced by the mood emanating from Liverpool and the player himself – was that the Reds had a ringside seat. Reports in Spain had indicated last week that Real Madrid were already cooling their own interest as a result.

Technically, Bellingham could still end up at Anfield in the future. He has more than two years left on his contract, he is still in the early stages of what will hopefully be a long career and neither he nor Dortmund are in a rush to part ways.

However, that does nothing to solve a problem at Liverpool, who have moved to the Bernabeu instead of Anfield since Tchouameni almost 12 months ago.

Liverpool legend Steven Gerrard has spoken about his next steps after turning down an “exciting opportunity”.

Liverpool icon Steven Gerrard has revealed he has abandoned the club and international opportunities after being sacked as Aston Villa manager.

The 42-year-old was sacked from Villa Park in October and replaced by Villarreal manager Unai Emery. After finding success in the Scottish Premier League with Glasgow Rangers, Gerrard moved to the Premier League to get his first opportunity to manage England’s top flight.

After leaving his role in the Midlands, the former Liverpool captain has been linked with many vacancies, including Leeds United, Southampton and even the Polish national team. After Gerrard retired from working as a studio pundit, he began running the Reds’ academy, managing the U18s. A chat with Liverpool Academy manager Alex Inglethorpe changed the former midfielder’s attitude after his career ended. And current manager Jurgen Klopp has given him the chance to learn his trade away from Kirkby’s youth spotlight.

“They gave me a chance in the Premier League and it was a successful experience at the start because we managed to get the bottom team to safety.” Gerrard has spoken about his decision to take over at Villa. League Managers Association Manager’s Magazine.

“I had time to analyze in depth and reflect on the challenges of our second season. In football, you have to learn from your mistakes and draw strength from your successes.”