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Hugo Ekitike has responded to the buzz surrounding his imminent move to Liverpool as he prepares for a whopping $106 million (£79 million) switch from Eintracht Frankfurt.
It appears Arne Slot's squad is set to welcome its seventh addition this summer if everything falls into place. The Anfield outfit is ready to shell out $93 million (£69 million) upfront with the possibility of an additional $13 million (£10 million) in add-ons, while the 23-year-old striker has agreed to personal terms for a six-year stint with Liverpool.
He's poised to be the first attacking player to join the club during this window. Ekitike will join forces with the likes of the inventive midfielder Florian Wirtz and dynamic full-backs Jeremie Frimpong and Milos Kerkez.
Earlier this week, it was reported that Ekitike had arrived in London alongside his representative, Karl Mwalako, to complete his medical and seal the deal.
Fabrizio Romano took to his social media to spread the word, with his Instagram post catching eyes. His caption read: "BREAKING: Hugo Ekitike has landed in Liverpool as €95m signing arrives on Merseyside!
"Here's Hugo with his agent Karl Mwalako ahead of first part of medical tests today, signing a six year contract. NEW STRIKER FOR SLOT."
At the time of writing, the post has garnered more than half a million likes, and it seems one of those likes may have been from Ekitike's own account.
Eintracht Frankfurt announced on Monday, July 21, that French forward Junior Dina Ebimbe was among a handful of players excused from Dino Toppmoller's squad heading to the United States for pre-season.
Their official statement disclosed: "Junior Dina Ebimbe, Aurelio Buta, Hrvoje Smolcic, Mo Dahoud and Hugo Ekitike have been released for talks with other clubs and will not travel to the training camp."
Following the completion of his medical and finalization of the transfer, the forward is expected to jet off to Hong Kong to join head coach Slot and his new Liverpool colleagues on their pre-season tour in the Far East.
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The current Liverpool squad made the trip just recently and are set to face AC Milan (July 26) and Yokohama FM (July 30) as part of their preparations for the forthcoming season.
Liverpool.com says: Ekitike looks like a player who will need to be a bit of a project for Arne Slot, but he has real talent. He scored 22 goals last season, which is impressive, but there is much more to his game.
With Florian Wirtz and Mohamed Salah teeing him up regularly, Ekitike will have no shortage of opportunities to score. He could make his first appearance for the Reds in Asia should the deal be confirmed in the next couple of days.
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