Liverpool have completed the signing of Brazilian goalkeeper Alisson from AS Roma, ending a long-running transfer saga and breaking the world record fee paid for a stopper.
The fee is reported to be €75m including add-ons, with the 25-year-old signing a five-year deal at Anfield to usurp Simon Mignolet, Loris Karius, Danny Ward and Adam Bogdan in the Merseyside club's weird and disrupted pecking order.
Alisson will be in UK on next hours to sign as new Liverpool player. Done deal also for his personal terms. He is really, really happy ????✅ #LFC #Liverpool #transfers
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 18, 2018
While the club are yet to confirm the signing themselves, the Guardian report that a deal has been agreed between all parties - with the transfer all done subject to a medical, which is expected to be completed on Saturday.
Alisson will fly to England on Wednesday night to move the deal into its final stages, having spoken to Jurgen Klopp on Tuesday to discuss a deal.
The Reds have now broken world records for the highest fees spent on a goalkeeper and a defender in the last year, a startling turnaround for Jurgen Klopp, who said last summer: "Other clubs can go out and spend more money and collect top players. I want to do it differently. I would even do it differently if I could spend that money."
#LFC have agreed a fee of £66.8m with Roma for Alisson
— James Pearce (@JamesPearceEcho) July 18, 2018
Chelsea were the club expected to provide the most competition for the Brazil international's services as they look to replace Thibaut Courtois, who is nearing a move to Real Madrid before next month's transfer deadline.
Roma only made the Brazilian a starter in their side this last season, having left him to sit on the bench behind Wojciech Szczesny in his first season in Europe following a €7.5m move from Internacional.
8 - Alisson conceded 28 league goals last season (excl. OGs), but based on Opta xG data for the shots on target he's faced, the average goalkeeper would've been expected to concede 36 goals. This was the biggest differential by a Serie A goalkeeper in 2017-18 (8). Coveted. pic.twitter.com/g8MW47pNLZ
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) July 17, 2018
The Italian side are expected to spend some of the profits from the move on a former Liverpool man, taking Suso from Serie A rivals AC Milan, while Paris Saint-Germain's Alphonse Areola is the most likely target to directly replace Alisson.