IN MY OPINION - I think this latest offer (IF TRUE) of 20m + addons could get it done if the add ons reach 25m
The key bit from that article is: The club have considered a number of options this summer, but have always regarded 27-year-old Lucumi as their preferred target.
We had equally interesting links to Diakite at the weekend so I think we're negotiating on both. Whether we want both or either/or remains to be seen
Is Lucumi the only left sided centre half we've been seriously linked to (there was the tenuous Igor at Brighton link)? If so, I can see why that would be the preferred target out of the reported centre back options. Will give us much better squad and playing balance.
Badly written article though, says he visited Dalgliesh when he was managing the mags in 2011. Dalgliesh was managing Liverpool then. Pardew was the mags manager at that time. If you can't get basic facts like that right it undermines the rest of the article. Still funny, though.
I'm not sure the club are fully set on two mind, from Phil Smith it sounded like we wanted one high-calibre cb and could maybe look for a 2nd. - 16:41 onwards about transfers work being done on a GK, looking for another winger, at least 1 CB, potentially 2. Looking at a midfielder (Xhaka you'd assume) and potentially a striker
no idea mate. I just can't see us spending the 60m on two centre backs that some think we will. We absolutely might, of course, and I can see we can possibly afford it, I just don't think we will.