Curtis Jones and Inter Milan: the transfer chase that has run all year

Inter Milan have stepped up their pursuit of Liverpool midfielder Curtis Jones, with reports suggesting the Italian club have made a breakthrough and signalled via intermediaries that they would pay as much as 35 million euros, roughly £29.9 million, for the England international. Jones, a graduate of Liverpool's academy, is said to be ready to push for a move away from Anfield. Reports claim he has declined an offer to extend his contract, which is believed to have one year remaining. Inter's interest is not new — the midfielder has been a target for the Milan club throughout the year — but the chase has intensified as the transfer window nears its close. The timing matters. Inter are seeking to strengthen their midfield before the deadline and have reportedly set Liverpool a cut-off point to complete the deal quickly. Liverpool, for their part, want a formal bid on the table. Whether the two clubs can agree a fee — and whether Jones stays or goes — now hangs in the balance.

Inter Milan step up their pursuit of Curtis Jones

Inter Milan are pursuing Liverpool midfielder Curtis Jones, and the chase has entered a decisive phase. Reports suggest the Serie A club have made a breakthrough in their pursuit of the midfielder, and that Jones himself is now ready to push for a move away from Anfield. Neither development has been confirmed by the clubs, but together they mark a shift in a story that has been building for months.

The timing matters. With the transfer window as the pressure point, every week that passes sharpens the stakes for all three parties. Inter, according to reports, are seeking to strengthen their midfield before the deadline and view Jones as a key piece of that plan. Liverpool, for their part, reportedly want the Italian club to submit a formal bid rather than continue working through intermediaries.

Jones's stance, if the reports are accurate, changes the equation. A player prepared to agitate for an exit puts his club in a weaker negotiating position, and it hands the buying club encouragement to keep pushing. Reports claim Inter have signalled via intermediaries that they would pay as much as 35 million euros, roughly £29.9 million, to get a deal done.

What remains unclear is whether Liverpool will engage at that level. Persuading the Premier League club to sell has reportedly proven difficult, and no formal offer has been confirmed. For now, the pursuit is live, the window is ticking, and the next move appears to rest with Inter.

A year of interest: how Inter's chase for Jones developed

The story did not begin in the final weeks of the window. According to reports, Inter Milan have been tracking Curtis Jones throughout the year, with their interest in the Liverpool midfielder described as ongoing from the start of 2025.

By around June, that interest had reportedly hardened into something more concrete. Reports from that period suggest Inter made contact over a potential deal, with a valuation entering the picture and intermediaries involved in signalling what the Italian club might be prepared to pay.

The pressure reportedly increased in mid-July. Reports claim Inter intensified their efforts during that stretch, with suggestions that Jones himself was ready to push for a move away from Anfield. Whether Liverpool were receptive is not established, and reports indicate Inter faced difficulty persuading the Premier League club to sell.

By late August, the chase had become a race against the clock. Reports claim Inter made a further approach and were prepared to increase their offer, and that the club set Liverpool a deadline in an attempt to complete the signing quickly. Whether that deadline produced an agreement before the window shut remains unknown.

1. 2025-01-01

   Ongoing interest

2. 2025-06-01

   Approach and valuation

3. 2025-07-15

   Pressure increases

4. 2025-08-20

   Late-window push

The numbers on the table: 35 million euros and counting

The clearest figure to emerge is 35 million euros. Inter have signalled through intermediaries that they would pay as much as that for Jones, a sum put at roughly £29.9 million in sterling. Separate reports describe contact with Liverpool over a potential deal valued at around $40.5 million, suggesting the numbers under discussion have shifted as the chase has developed.

Whether any of this has been put in writing is another matter. It is not established that Inter have submitted a formal bid rather than working through intermediaries, and that distinction carries weight. Liverpool are reported to want exactly that — a formal offer on the table before the window closes — which implies the talking so far has stopped short of it.

Reports suggest the Italian club have made a further approach and are prepared to increase their offer, with another bid said to be in preparation. Reports also claim Inter set Liverpool a deadline in an effort to force the deal through quickly. What Liverpool would actually accept remains unknown. No minimum fee has been made public, and there is no confirmation the club would sanction a sale at any of the figures so far circulated.

Liverpool's dilemma: one year left and a contract offer on hold

For Liverpool, the interest from Milan lands at an awkward moment. Reports suggest Jones has only one year remaining on his current contract, and that he has already declined an offer to extend it. That combination, if accurate, leaves the club exposed: keep him and risk losing an academy graduate for nothing, or sell while his value holds.

Liverpool are reportedly weighing up a fresh contract offer, though whether one has been formally tabled — and how Jones would respond — remains unclear. The picture is complicated further by suggestions that the midfielder himself is ready to push for a move away from Anfield.

The club's stance toward Inter, according to reports, is that they want a formal bid submitted before the transfer window closes rather than continued contact through intermediaries. So far, Inter are said to have found it difficult to persuade Liverpool to sell at all.

Two things remain unknown. Jones's final preference — stay, renew, or leave — has not been confirmed. And Liverpool's minimum acceptable fee, if they would sanction a sale at any price, has not been established. Until those questions are answered, the club holds a player entering the final year of his deal with his future unresolved.

The Szoboszlai spat and Liverpool's response

Curtis Jones was involved in a heated on-pitch dispute with Liverpool teammate Dominik Szoboszlai, according to reports. The exact circumstances of the confrontation have not been established, but the incident was described as a heated exchange between the two midfielders during play.

Liverpool have responded to the reported spat, according to the same coverage, though the nature of that response — whether a public statement or internal handling — has not been detailed. Neither Jones nor Szoboszlai is reported to have commented publicly on the incident.

The dispute surfaced during a period in which Jones's future at Anfield was already the subject of sustained speculation. Whether there is any connection between the on-pitch disagreement and the wider questions over his position at the club is not something the reports establish, and neither club nor player has suggested one. What is confirmed in the coverage is only that the incident took place and that Liverpool addressed it.

Why Chivu wants Jones — and what he would offer Inter

Inter's interest in Jones is rooted in a straightforward need: according to reports, the club are seeking to strengthen their midfield before the transfer window closes, and Jones has emerged as a leading candidate to fill that gap.

What makes the pursuit particularly interesting is how Cristian Chivu reportedly views the player. Reports suggest the Inter coach believes Jones could be used in a wide position, rather than solely in the central midfield role he has occupied at Liverpool. That kind of tactical flexibility would suit a coach looking to reshape his options across the pitch, and it may help explain why Inter have persisted with their chase rather than moving on to alternative targets.

For Liverpool, meanwhile, any departure would carry a weight beyond the transfer fee. Jones is, according to reports, a graduate of the club's academy — one of the homegrown players who came through the youth system and into the first team. Losing such a player tends to resonate differently with supporters than the sale of a signing from elsewhere, and it frames the decision Liverpool face as something more than a purely financial calculation.

What happens before the window closes

Inter are reportedly preparing another offer for Jones, and according to reports have set Liverpool a deadline in an attempt to complete the signing quickly before the transfer window shuts. Liverpool, for their part, are said to want Inter to submit a formal bid rather than continue working through intermediaries. Whether Inter's reported deadline produced an agreement before the window closed is not known.

The late-window manoeuvring comes as Inter seek to strengthen their midfield, with reports suggesting they face difficulty persuading Liverpool to sell. Jones is reportedly ready to push for a move away from Anfield, though his final preference—stay, renew, or leave—has not been confirmed.

One possible related thread has emerged elsewhere. Brighton's Yasin Ayari has reportedly responded to interest from Liverpool, according to reports, raising the possibility that the club are already looking at midfield options should Jones depart.

Much remains unresolved. Liverpool's minimum acceptable fee is unclear, as is whether they would sanction a sale at all. It is not established whether Inter converted their interest into a formal written offer. And the status of Liverpool's possible new contract offer to Jones, and his response to it, remains open. The answers will determine whether this long-running chase ends in a deal or another year of speculation.

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