Liverpool sold Dominic Solanke to Bournemouth four years ago but could still make money on the player amid reported interest from Newcastle.
When Solanke joined Liverpool, it was seen as a coup to snatch the Under-20 World Cup Ballon d’Or winner from Chelsea. However, his stay on Merseyside lasted just two years and included just one goal.
Having arrived for an undisclosed fee, Liverpool sold Solanke to Bournemouth for £19m plus add-ons which have already been met, taking the price to £24m.
With 12 goals in 19 Premier League games for the Cherries this season, Solanke is now attracting interest from elsewhere, which could mean more profit for Liverpool.
The Telegraph reports that “Newcastle have made an inquiry into Dominic Solanke but have been told Bournemouth will not sell him this month.”
Journalist Mike McGrath added that Eddie Howe “is a long-time admirer of Solanke”, which would make sense given the manager signed him while he was at Bournemouth.
No price has been reliably reported, but for the sake of argument, we could consider £40 million.
Liverpool have a 20 per cent sell-on clause on the forward, meaning they would receive a fifth of any profit Bournemouth made on the £24m they spent on him.
For example, if Newcastle bought Solanke for £40 million, Liverpool would receive £3.2 million. Although it is far from being an income that increases the budget, it would be a vindication for Michael Edwards, who originally negotiated the clause.
Solanke only had one goal and one assist in 27 appearances for the Reds, although that included just six starts.
Displacing Roberto Firmino from the starting XI was an almost impossible task, and Solanke played with the style Liverpool needed at the time.
However, the quality we saw in flashes is now developing into a complete Premier League striker.
After scoring 30 goals in 48 appearances during the 2021/22 season, when Bournemouth were in the Championship, Solanke used last season to readjust to Premier League life.
Now he seems to have finally found his place at the top level and it wouldn’t be surprising to see him soon playing football for teams like Newcastle or Tottenham.
