Reports in Spain claim Liverpool chief Ian Ayre is prepping Pedro bid

According to Spanish sources, Brendan Rodgers is preparing to make Barcelona’s Pedro his eighth summer signing, following the capture of centre forward Christian Benteke for £32.5m.

Manchester United were thought to be leading the race for the astute attacker, who has a £21m buyout clause in his contract, though Pedro is top of Rodgers’ list and he wants to tie up a deal for him as soon as possible. With Barcelona having signed Arda Turan from Atletico Madrid this summer, Pedro is surplus to requirements and the Catalan club is keen to balance the books.

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Meanwhile, teammate Sergio Busquets has also conceded that Pedro could leave: “I think that as a team-mate and friend, I would like him to stay for a long time but I understand that he has doubts,” he said.

“He wants to play but there is a lot of competition. In our team we have the best players and it’s very difficult.

“I hope he stays but the decision is his.”

The Reds, 9/4 with Coral for a top four finish next term, have strengthened considerably since last season ended and have gradually gained momentum, after firstly snapping up James Milner and Danny Ings on free transfers, before Championship duo Adam Bogdan and Joe Gomez joined.

With the first phase finished with, Liverpool then brought in the cavalry. Chief executive Ian Ayre hot-footed it over to South America to thrash out a deal for Roberto Firmino, before stopping off on the English south coast to wrap up the signing of Nathaniel Clyne.