Rafael Benítez has moved closer to snapping up his final summer transfer target. Feyenoord striker Dirk Kuyt is that target, and with the sale of Djimi Traore earlier in the week, Rafa has an extra £2m to bargain with. Speaking after last night’s Champions League win over Maccabi Haifa, Benítez admitted that Kuyt was one of the names being looked at for the next signing. Reports today also suggest that the two clubs are getting close to an agreement.
Rafa said: “We have two or three names and Kuyt is one. We are still working hard but maybe a little closer.”
Kuyt has made it clear he wants to leave Feyenoord, but he’s got eyes for one club only, and that’s Liverpool. He’s said to be valued by Feyenoord at £10m, and they so far have been unwilling to budge on that figure. A report in the Liverpool Daily Post says that last month the Reds made a bid for the player which included goalkeeper Jerzy Dudek and full-back Jan Kromkamp, with £6m cash, but Feyenoord turned it down.
The latest offer reported does not include any players, which is just as well with Feyenoord believed to be uninterested in Dudek, happy enough with their existing keepers.