- Liverpool Prepare for Curtis Jones Exit as Inter Agree Deal Worth Up to £30 Million
Curtis Jones is set to leave Liverpool for Inter Milan after the Serie A side agreed a deal worth up to €35 million (£30 million) for the midfielder, bringing his long association with the Anfield club close to an end.
Liverpool have accepted an initial €30 million (£25.7 million) fee, with a further €5 million (£4.3 million) potentially payable in add-ons. The agreement also includes a 10.00% sell-on clause, giving Liverpool an additional financial interest should Inter eventually move Jones on for a higher fee.
The 25-year-old is expected to travel to Italy for a medical before completing the transfer.
The deal represents the culmination of Inter’s sustained interest in the England midfielder. The Italian club attempted to sign Jones in January through a loan arrangement carrying an option for a permanent transfer, but Liverpool rejected that proposal.
Inter returned with a permanent offer in June, initially bidding €25 million (£21.7 million). Liverpool turned that down, valuing the midfielder at around £35 million despite Jones entering the final year of his contract.
The eventual agreement reflects a compromise between Liverpool’s valuation and the risk of allowing an academy graduate with significant first-team experience to enter the latter stages of his contract.
For Liverpool, the transfer is therefore partly a football decision and partly one of asset management.
Jones joined the club’s academy at the age of nine and progressed through the youth system before making his senior debut under Jürgen Klopp in 2019. He went on to make 228 appearances for Liverpool, becoming a useful and technically accomplished option across several midfield roles.
His versatility, however, also became part of the challenge. Jones was capable of operating deeper in midfield, higher up the pitch and in wider roles, but he never consistently secured one position as his own.
Last season he made 49 appearances in all competitions, yet started only 18 Premier League matches, illustrating the gap between being heavily involved in the squad and becoming an undisputed first-choice midfielder.
Across two seasons under Arne Slot, Jones accumulated 95 appearances, demonstrating his usefulness during a demanding schedule even when he was not guaranteed a regular starting place.
That makes his departure a calculated loss for Liverpool. The club will receive a substantial transfer fee for a player with only one year remaining on his contract, avoiding the risk of either selling at a reduced price later or losing him without a fee next summer.
But Liverpool also lose a home-grown player with extensive knowledge of the club, Premier League experience and the ability to cover several positions.
Squad depth will consequently become part of the calculation.
Jones’ exit could create greater opportunities for younger midfielders, including Trey Nyoni, who has been pushing for a larger senior role after impressing during pre-season.
Yet relying on youth to replace an experienced squad player carries its own risk, particularly across a season in which Liverpool will expect to compete on several fronts.
The move also represents a significant change for Jones. Having spent more than a decade within Liverpool’s system, a transfer to Serie A would give him the opportunity to establish himself away from the competition for places that repeatedly limited his run of starts at Anfield.
Inter’s interest suggests the Italian club sees qualities in Jones that can translate well to Serie A particularly his comfort in possession, close control and ability to operate between different midfield zones.
He is also understood to be attracted by the prospect of a fresh challenge. For Inter, the signing would continue a notable recruitment drive involving English players. According to the source report, Jones would become the club’s third English signing of the summer after John Stones and Djed Spence.
Liverpool, meanwhile, appear to have concluded that extracting close to £30 million now is preferable to allowing contract uncertainty to become a larger issue.
The inclusion of the 10.00% sell-on clause strengthens that calculation. If Jones develops into a more valuable asset in Italy and is later sold, Liverpool retain the possibility of earning again from a player they developed internally.
That makes the economics of the deal difficult to ignore. Academy graduates are particularly valuable from an accounting perspective because transfer proceeds from their sale generally provide clubs with substantial book profit compared with players acquired for significant transfer fees.
But Jones’ departure will still carry emotional significance. He developed at Liverpool, broke into the senior team under Klopp and became part of a generation that competed for domestic and European honours.
His exit therefore represents more than another midfield transaction. It closes a long chapter between Liverpool and a player who grew from the academy into an established first-team footballer, even if he never fully secured the permanent starting role his talent once appeared capable of delivering.
For Inter, the gamble is that a change of league and greater positional clarity can unlock another level in Jones.
For Liverpool, the judgement is that receiving up to £30 million, retaining a future sell-on interest and creating space within the midfield represents better value than carrying the contractual risk for another season.
If the medical and remaining formalities are completed, Jones will leave Anfield with 228 senior appearances behind him and with Inter offering the fresh start he has increasingly been seeking.
