Inter Milan's Pursuit of Curtis Jones Hits Liverpool Stalemate
Inter Milan’s pursuit of Curtis Jones has hit a hard wall of Liverpool steel, with the Italian champions and the Anfield hierarchy miles apart on what the midfielder is actually worth.
The player, crucially, is not the problem. He has already given the green light to a move, is treating his Liverpool chapter as effectively closed, and views San Siro as the right stage for the next phase of his career. The stand-off lies entirely in the numbers.
Inter push, Liverpool refuse to blink
Inter reopened talks at the start of last week with a bid in the region of £18m (€21m, $24m), a figure that barely made it through the door before being dismissed. The response from Merseyside was blunt. Try again.
The Nerazzurri did. Their second offer, around £21m (€24m, $28m), came wrapped in improved terms and the clear message that Jones was a priority target. Liverpool still said no. The gap, as club sources describe it, remains “significant”.
From Liverpool’s side, the stance is simple and unflinching: Jones is valued at roughly £35m (€40m, $46m). They see no reason to move far from that mark.
Inter see it very differently. To them, that figure belongs to a different market, a different reality.
Two markets, one player
Inside Anfield, the logic is rooted in the current English transfer landscape. Manchester City’s willingness to push past £120m for Elliot Anderson has only hardened Liverpool’s view that homegrown talent now commands a heavy premium. Jones, they argue, sits squarely in that bracket: English, academy-produced, technically gifted, and still with plenty of room to grow, even if he is entering the final 12 months of his contract.
Inter are unmoved by Premier League economics. Their position is that England’s inflated fees should not dictate a cross-border deal, especially when there is no domestic auction in play. Jones wants Italy, not another English club. There is no rival Premier League bidder to drive the price up.
They also point to the clock. One year left on a contract usually weakens a selling club’s hand. Inter believe Liverpool are overplaying theirs.
Jones caught in the middle
Jones’ camp, for now, sit closer to the Italian view than Liverpool’s. Those around the 25-year-old are understood to consider a fee below £30m (€34.5m, $46m) a fair compromise – a number that acknowledges both his ability and his contractual reality.
It is a figure that edges towards Inter’s thinking and away from Liverpool’s. And it comes with a clear subtext: the player wants this move.
Jones is excited by the prospect of joining the reigning Serie A champions. Inter have tracked him since January, when they first explored a deal, and never really stepped away. They see a versatile midfielder with the technique and intelligence to thrive in Italy, and they have been planning this push for months.
At Liverpool, the picture is less enticing for him. He started just 18 Premier League games in the 2025/26 season and is not seen as a natural fit for the high-energy, relentless style favoured by new manager Andoni Iraola. Inside the club, Jones is respected and valued, but not ring-fenced as an automatic starter. No one expects his role to suddenly expand under the new regime.
For a player approaching what should be his peak years, that matters. It has only sharpened his desire to move.
A deal that still wants to happen
Despite the frustration on all sides, nobody is walking away. Inter remain convinced that Jones is worth the effort and that his determination to join them will eventually tilt the negotiation. Liverpool are open to selling, but only on terms they believe reflect his value in a market they know all too well.
So the deadlock holds. A player pushing for Italy. A club in Italy pushing for him. And a club in England refusing to bend to a price they see as below par for one of their own.
There is, though, one crucial detail: talks are expected to continue. Inter will not abandon a plan months in the making, and Liverpool know that a homegrown asset running down his deal for free next summer is far from ideal.
Somewhere between £21m and £35m lies the number that unlocks this transfer. The question now is who blinks first – the club that built him, or the club that believe they can rebuild him in black and blue.
