The brilliant Brighton and Liverpool swap deal that makes perfect sense as Reds prepare '£70m' Kaoru Mitoma raid

Liverpool are reportedly keen to sign Brighton’s Japanese star Kaoru Mitoma.

The 27-year-old has been a key man for Albion this term with eight goals and three assists in all competitions so far.

Mitoma was sidelined last Saturday for the 2-2 draw against relegation-bound Leicester City. It’s the first Premier League match he has missed all season as the winger has 28 starts from 31 top-flight outings.

Saudi Pro-League club Al Nassr were keen to sign Mitoma in January and made two substantial bids, which were believed to be around around the £70m mark.

The deal failed to progress as Brighton very rarely sell key players in January and Mitoma – if he does move – would prefer to test his considerable skills in the Champions League.

Quest for Europe

Defeats to Aston Villa and Crystal Palace along with their frustrating home draw to Leicester have seen Brighton slip to 10th in the table. Champions League football looks out of the question for the Seagulls next term but with six games to go – starting at Brentford this Saturday – Europa League or Conference League remains a viable target.

Whether that will be enough to keep Mitoma happy remains to be seen. The attacker will have two years remaining on his contract this summer and as yet there is no talk of new contract discussions.

Brighton chief Paul Barber admitted earlier this year that Brighton will “likely” sell their top talents at some stage. That could be this summer and if they do they are set to make a massive profit on the reported £3m they paid Kawasaki Frontale for Mitoma in 2021.

Premier League champions-elect Liverpool are set for busy transfer window this summer as Arne Slot looks to freshen up his squad. Trent Alexander-Arnold is expected to go to Real Madrid and Luis Díaz continues to be linked with Barcelona. The futures of left-back Andy Robertson and striker Darwin Nunez also look uncertain.

Mohamed Salah signed a new two-year deal and Virgil van Dijk is expected to follow and Liverpool also hope to bring in Bournemouth’s Hungarian left-back Milos Kerkez. Adding Mitoma to play alongside Kerkez would make for an extremely strong left flank.

A Liverpool swap deal?

Brighton’s guide price for Mitoma is likely to be offers above £70m. Albion tend to prefer stand-alone deals and very rarely look into player exchanges – but if they did, who at Liverpool could tempt them?

One player immediately springs to mind and it’s a midfielder Albion have been linked with in the past. Harvey Elliott has been on the fringes of the first team this term as injuries and fierce competition for places have limited him to 12 Premier League appearances, with no starts.

Elliott is still just 22-year-old but has made 141 appearances for the Reds since joining from Fulham in 2019. During his time at Liverpool, Elliott has won the FA Cup (2022), Carabao Cup (2022, 2024) and the Premier League (2019-20).

The attacking midfield ace is the perfect age for Brighton and brings a wealth of experience. He is also a versatile performer who can play most positions across the midfield and attacking areas.

Mitoma may well leave Albion this summer and Elliott would not be a like-for-like replacement but he would certainly be a classy addition for the Seagulls.

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