Liverpool have reportedly had a mega-money bid for Federico Chiesa rejected by Italian giants Juventus.

What's the story?

According to Italian newspaper Repubblica, the Reds made an £86 million offer for the 23-year-old, which would have made the winger the second most expensive Premier League player in history, behind Paul Pogba.

The report goes on to claim that returning Juve manager Max Allegri is believed to consider the forward ‘non-transferable’, meaning Liverpool will have to move onto other targets this summer.

Fans will be gutted

Chiesa caught the eye at this year's European Championship, putting in a string of impressive performances to help fire Roberto Mancini's charges to the trophy.

He only made the switch from boyhood club Fiorentina to the Allianz Stadium 12 months ago, but he's showcased his world-class potential on a regular basis, bagging 15 goals and providing 11 assists in 46 appearances for Old Lady throughout 2020/21.

It's little surprise then that Jurgen Klopp has turned to the tricky forward in an attempt to solve his side's attacking issues, although prizing Chiesa away from Italy appears to be an impossible task.

With Sadio Mane and Roberto Firmino both suffering from significant drop-offs in form last season, the German tactician is thought to be in the market for a new attacker this summer.

However, the 19-time English champions are unlikely to come back with an improved offer for the Juve wizard given the financial impact of the ongoing pandemic.

Director of football Michael Edwards has already worked some of his usual magic in the current window, securing the lucrative sales of Harry Wilson, Marko Grujic and Taiwo Awoniyi, but Chiesa will probably remain out of Liverpool's reach.

The news will surely leave the club's supporters feeling gutted, as the Euro 2020-winning winger would have been the ideal signing to compete with Mane, Diogo Jota and Mohamed Salah for a place in the starting XI.

Seeing their club target a player described as “extraordinary” by Bayern Munich manager Julian Nagelsmann may give the Liverpool fans hope that a big-name signing is around the corner, but it missing out on the highly-rated Chiesa is a blow to the Reds' faithful .

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