Liverpool 'lead' race for perfect Jeremie Frimpong replacement as Andoni Iraola sent £55.3m transfer demand

Liverpool are ahead of Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur in the race for Michael Kayode but may have to fork out as much as £55.3m to land him, according to a report.

The 22-year-old has quickly cemented himself as a key player for Keith Andrews, starting 37 Premier League games last season and coming up with a goal and assist.

Kayode has also started four of Brentford's five top-flight matches in 2026-27, finding the net against Tottenham Hotspur and helping the Bees stay unbeaten so far.

Kayode's exploits in England also caught the eye of Italy head coach Roberto Mancini, who handed the defender his national team debut on September 28, and the Brentford man marked his inaugural appearance with a goal in their 4-1 thrashing of Turkey.

The defender retained his place in the Italy XI against France, completing the full 90 in that 1-1 draw on October 2, and a move to a Big Six club has unsurprisingly been mooted.

Liverpool told to pay £55.3m for Michael Kayode?

According to CaughtOffside, all of Liverpool, Arsenal, Spurs, Newcastle United and Juventus are keeping an eye on Kayode, but Andoni Iraola's men are currently at the head of the queue.

The Reds have apparently placed the former Fiorentina man at the 'top of their watchlist', although their interest has not progressed beyond the initial monitoring stage, and no talks have begun with either Brentford or the player.

Kayode only signed a new deal with Brentford in July, and his current terms run until 2032, so the Bees will not entertain any discussions for the right-back in January.

However, if Liverpool are to make a move for Kayode in the summer, the report adds that Brentford would be looking for at least £51m and potentially as much as £55.3m to let him leave.

The Bees signed Kayode from Fiorentina in 2025 for a total package worth £15.3m, made up of an initial £425k loan in January plus a £14.9m permanent fee that same summer.

The Italian has since scored two goals and provided three assists in 63 games for Brentford, helping the Bees exceed expectations to finish in the top half of the 2025-26 Premier League table.

Why Michael Kayode is the perfect signing for Liverpool

Iraola is not short of players who can play right-back, but Conor Bradley remains out, Joe Gomez is out of favour, Jeremie Frimpong has struggled to settle and Ronald Araujo is playing out of position.

The Barcelona loanee has made his mark at right-back after Frimpong's underwhelming start to the season, though, culminating in the latter failing to start any of Liverpool's last three Premier League games.

However, Iraola needs Araujo as centre-back cover while Giovanni Leoni is only just about to return from an ACL injury, and Gomez's long-term future is up in the air; the Englishman's contract expires in 2027.

If Liverpool also cut their losses on the under-performing Frimpong, the Premier League-proven Kayode would represent the perfect competition for Bradley from 2027-28 onwards.