Liverpool strike £30m transfer agreement - but there's a huge catch ahead of deadline day

Liverpool strike £30m transfer agreement - but there's a huge catch ahead of deadline day

Liverpool have agreed a deal to sign Lucca Brughmans from Genk ahead of Tuesday's transfer deadline, but the move is contingent on the future of Giorgi Mamardashvili

Liverpool have struck a deal for Genk goalkeeper Lucca Brughmans, but there are still some moving parts ahead of Tuesday's transfer deadline.

The 18-year-old goalkeeper has been identified by Liverpool's global talent team as a player of huge potential. Brughmans has attracted interest from across Europe, but the Reds have now won the race, striking a £30million deal with Genk.

However, Brughmans is currently set to stay in Belgium for the 2026/27 season, as reported by The Liverpool Echo. His immediate future is dependent on Giorgi Mamardashvili.

Mamardashvili is Liverpool's back-up goalkeeper behind Alisson and made 20 appearances last season while the Brazilian was injured. But the Georgian is now being targeted by Nottingham Forest ahead of 11pm on Tuesday night.

FOLLOW OUR LIVERPOOL FB PAGE!Latest Reds news and more on our dedicated Facebook page

Get YOUR Mirror Football Newsletter

Get our comprehensive football coverage, with news, updates, opinions, analysis and everything that matters to you, straight to your inbox.

To get it, it's a quick and easy one-two:

2. Enter your email and hit Subscribe

Forest manager Oliver Glasner wants a new goalkeeper and is considering Mamardashvili alongside Crystal Palace's Dean Henderson, according to reports.

Liverpool want to keep Mamardashvili, who joined from Valencia for £29m last summer. But they will bring in Brughmans in the next few days if they lose their current back-up to Forest. The keeper, who only recently turned 18, has only made 14 league appearances for Genk so far.

He has also been courted by Real Madrid, who were hopeful of their chances, given the influence of fellow Belgian Thibaut Courtois. Yet Liverpool have managed to convince Brughmans his future lies on Merseyside, having also won the races for young defenders Mor Talla Ndiaye and Ifeanyi Ndukwe this year.

His decision could be linked to the fact that Alisson has entered the final year of his contract with Liverpool, meaning a potential route to the first team in the summer of 2027. The Reds also have Freddie Woodman on the books as their third-choice goalkeeper.

Whether he joins this summer or not, Brughmans is the latest signing, following Victor Munoz, Jeremy Jacquet and Ronald Araujo, while Bradley Barcola is also set to arrive on Monday.

Liverpool boss Andoni Iraola has been frustrated by the summer transfer window and it overlapping with the start of the Premier League season. "We've been patient all summer and now we just have to wait," he told BBC Match of the Day after the 2-2 draw with Nottingham Forest on Saturday.

"We just have to wait a couple more days and see how we finish and how the squad looks in the second half of September. Honestly, I am looking forward to having who we have and a definitive squad so we can start working with certainties."

Join our LFC WhatsApp community and get all the latest LFC news, views, transfer gossip and more, as it happens We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.

Sky's Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle includes at least 215 live Premier League clashes across the 2026/27 season, with more than 1,500 games from the EFL and beyond, plus F1, golf and darts.

This introductory offer saves £384 compared to the standard price, with every package also providing 100 regular channels alongside free Netflix and discovery+ subscriptions.