Liverpool have made an approach for young Italian striker Fabio Borini.
New manager Brendan Rodgers knows all about the Euro 2012 star, having coached him in the youth ranks at Chelsea and signed him on loan from the Blues after becoming Swansea boss.
Rodgers is busily scouting potential new faces and wants to make Borini a second Reds signing with a Liberty Stadium connection, as they also head the chase for Gylfi Sigurdsson, who shone for the Swans last season while on loan from Hoffenheim.
Borini has enjoyed a meteoric rise through the Azzurri's ranks since leaving Chelsea 12 months ago.
Following a successful loan spell at Swansea, where he scored six goals in 12 games to help get them promoted to the Premier League, he refused to sign a new Stamford Bridge contract and joined Parma instead.
Almost immediately, he was loaned out to Roma, who then bought a stake in the young striker, creating a joint-ownership situation.
Borini then did an Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, scoring 10 goals in 26 games to go from being a relative unknown to winning a spot in the Italian squad at the Euros.
The youngster, who only turned 21 in March, is now seen as a future Italy star.
His rise did not go unnoticed in west Wales.
Rodgers is a keen admirer after playing such a prominent role in the player’s development, and he has made quiet enquiries about a potential price for the forward.
The good news for Liverpool is that Parma struck the joint ownership deal with Roma in the hope it would swiftly earn then a lucrative pay-day should the striker prove a success in Serie A.
They paid only £600,000 in development compensation to Chelsea, as Borini’s contract with the Londoners had expired.
Now both clubs would be happy to cash in.
Liverpool have yet to make a formal bid but there have been talks about the level of fee which would be required to satisfy both Italian clubs, and it is thought that figure could be around the £10million mark.
Rodgers is close to making Sigurdsson his first Liverpool signing, after the midfielder turned down the chance to join Swansea on a permanent basis.
New Swans boss Michael Laudrup admitted as much on Thursday, when he said it would be impossible to match the Reds' financial clout.
“As far as I know, he has a possibility to go to another club," said the Dane, as he was unveiled as Rodgers' successor. "If bigger clubs come with a lot of money, it’s very difficult to compete.”
http://m.mirror.co.uk/article?id=904995/It may just be a case of the media knowing Rodgers worked with Borini.
If not, and he signs, let's hope he's a good player.
