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Liverpool’s hopes of signing Schalke midfielder Leon Goretzska have suffered a blow with the news that the German club want to offer him a new deal which will make him the best-paid player in their history.
According to reports in the German press, Schalke are ready to offer Goretzska, who is out of contract at the end of the season, a bumper new deal, with manager Christian Heidel saying “we go to the pain threshold and have done everything to show Leon that he is extremely important to Schalke”.
The German international, who recently became a big YouTube hit after his back-heel goal against Azerbaijan, has long been considered a Liverpool target, although a host of other clubs are also in contention for his signature, including Bayern Munich, Barcelona and Chelsea.
In any case, any move for Goretzska is unlikely to take place in January, with potential deals for the player complicated by the fact that his former club, Bochum, are owed 20% of any transfer fee.
Andy is an exiled English football fan living in Cyprus. He loves all sports but football is his abiding passion, and he still has dreams every now and then about scoring the winning goal in a Wembley Cup Final, even though his playing days are long gone. He follows most major leagues, across Europe at least, and has a favoured team in each. When he’s not watching, listening, reading or downloading podcasts about football, he spend his time worrying about his beloved Arsenal.