Liverpool announce transfer of Hugo Ekitike from Eintracht Frankfurt

NBC Sports

a day ago

Liverpool have won the race for Hugo Ekitike, announcing the purchase of the Eintracht Frankfurt forward on Wednesday.
Ekitike, 23, had long been linked with a Premier League move, with Newcastle United and Manchester United reportedly joining Liverpool in pursuit of the Frenchman.
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Anfield is his destination, and just in time to join up with the Reds' title defense via preseason in Asia.
Liverpool must've been monitoring Ekitike for some time, as they were quickly linked with the forward once Newcastle reportedly bid for his services.
Earlier this week, Eintracht were said to have agreed a $106 million fee with the Reds, who've outspent their rivals this summer with a huge-money deal for Florian Wirtz to go along with the purchase of Ekitike and relatively-smaller deals for Milos Kerkez, Jeremie Frimpong, and the previously-agreed transfer of Giorgi Mamardashvili.
Hugo Ekitike move signals expectation of all trophies
There is no spin on this one — Liverpool are no longer the club of Jurgen Klopp's 'poor us' claims, as the Reds are spending huge dollars to compete on all fronts. Their outlay is reportedly well over $350 million, with sales of Jarell Quansah, Trent Alexander-Arnold, and Caoimhin Kelleher accounting for about one-fifth of their spend.
Last summer was a quiet one as Arne Slot weighed up the squad and saw who was fit for his purposes. The Reds' reclamation of the Premier League was enough to open the flood gates on two massive purchases, and Ekitike and Wirtz arrive at Anfield to boost a side who is being pursued by the wallets of Manchester City, Chelsea, Arsenal, and Manchester United.
Ekitike joins Arsenal's reported capture of Viktor Gyokeres, Man City's January buy of Omar Marmoush, and Chelsea additions Joao Pedro and Liam Delap in a the pursuit of big scorers, and gives the Reds so much depth. It also could signal more outgoings, as Luis Diaz has been linked with Bayern Munich and Diogo Jota passed away tragically in the summer,.
Liverpool have never won back-to-back titles in the Premier League era and last won consecutive English top-flight trophies when they capped a three-season run atop the division in 1984.