Lavia would cost 58 million, what Liverpool paid for Xabi Alonso at the time

While some Reds fans see the price Southampton have set for their midfielder, Romeo Lavia, as fair and others as excessive, the reality is that these figures rarely fall below £50 million or euros is already a standard in modern football, and as long as teams like PSG, Manchester City or leagues like Saudi Arabia or MLS continue to offer exorbitant contracts, any player without much experience can get to charge for their services the amount for which legends used to be bought.

The truth is that the Reds do not seem to agree and are not willing to pay the almost 60 million that the Saints are asking for Lavia, preferring to save a few million and acquire Castello Lukeba for whom they see 40 of the big ones as a fair price as the age and productivity of the Frenchman could mean big profits for the Merseyside side in the future.

It is evident that the teams with less purchasing power want to take advantage of the interest of the giants of Europe to be able to sell them players at prices above their market value, and with the 58 million they are asking for Lavia, back in the 2005 season the Reds paid 19 million euros for Xabi Alonso, which is a third of the price Southampton are asking today for their star midfielder.

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It is not that Lavia is currently inexperienced and lacking in quality in midfield, but his price tag in relation to his playing career is not entirely congruent, and with just one full season under his belt, compared to Alonso's four before joining Liverpool, it is clear that the Saints are selling the Merseyside outfit the status of a "promising" rather than an immediately guaranteed player.