Overview

• Liverpool have agreed a £26m plus add-ons fee with Parma for 18-year-old centre-back Giovanni Leoni.
• Parma has cleared Leoni to fly to Merseyside for personal terms and a medical, and the deal includes no loan-back clause.
• Slot expects Leoni to join the first team straightaway, strengthening a defence depleted by Jarell Quansah’s sale and Joe Gomez’s pre-season fitness issues.
• Leoni made 17 Serie A appearances last season at around 6ft 4in, earning a reputation as one of Europe’s top young defensive prospects.
• Liverpool remain in separate negotiations to add Crystal Palace captain Marc Guéhi to their centre-back ranks.