Liverpool were one of the sides interested in signing Peterborough United youngster Benjamin Arthur this summer.
England U18 international Arthur ended up joining Brentford on transfer deadline day last week. But according to Peterborough chairman Darragh MacAnthony, Liverpool wanted him too.
“The only person who was fully respectful to us was Matthew Benham at Brentford, when they bought Benji Arthur, who is a scholar,” MacAnthony, who is a Reds fan, said on his The Hard Truth Podcast. “Benji wouldn’t sign a pro deal and we had 20 Premier League clubs [looking at him].”
“The England under-18 manager said he was one of the best centre-backs at that age, let alone for England, and it just set off a whole thing during July and August that all the top clubs, like my Liverpool, hadn’t been to a Posh game and they were coming to our under-21 games, first time I had seen them, and they were all looking at Benji.
“We had a price which was nearly a record for a League One scholar, plus millions in add ons, as I think he will be in their first team in three years’ time.
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“And knowing Brentford, they will probably sell him for £60 or £70 million.
“We have a solid sell on, so we will make millions off it, but to be fair to Matthew I had a figure up-front and I never changed on the figure and he got the figure, bang.”
Liverpool miss out on Arthur
It’s disappointing to hear that Liverpool were beaten to the punch by a Premier League rival here.
The Reds have been smart in youth recruitment over recent years. Following arrivals such as Harvey Elliott, Kaide Gordon and Bobby Clark, Liverpool have again added a couple of promising youngsters this summer.
Midfielder Trey Nyoni joined from Leicester City, with centre-back Amara Nallo following from West Ham United.
Both are very highly rated, but Arthur evidently is, too.
As MacAnthony predicts, it wouldn’t be a surprise if we now see the youngster in the Brentford first team soon, with a blockbuster transfer to follow.
You get the impression that if Liverpool had really wanted Arthur, they’d have been able to out-manoeuvre the Bees.
But they’ll no doubt be keeping tabs on his progress in West London, there may be chances in the future.