Liverpool have agreed on a deal to sell the Portuguese centre-back Tiago Ilori to Reading.
The Championship outfit have agreed to pay £3.75million for the former Sporting Lisbon youth star. The 23-year-old was regarded as a prodigious talent during his time in Portugal, but he failed to make an impact under Rodgers or Klopp.
Ilori spent most of his Liverpool career being away on loan at Bordeaux, Granada and Aston Villa.
Liverpool Echo are reporting that Ilori has been granted permission to discuss personal terms and undergo a medical with Reading now. Jaap Stam, the Reading manager was keen on signing the Liverpool defender this month.
The 23-year-old joined Liverpool for a fee of £3.5million from Sporting Lisbon in the summer of 2013 and therefore the Reds will make a marginal profit on his sale. The report from Echo also adds that Liverpool have inserted a 25% sell-on clause in the agreed contract.
Reading have a good chance of winning the Championship this season and manager Jaap Stam wants Ilori to help bolster their promotion push. Ilori is a ball-playing centre-back who is extremely quick and reads the game well. The Championship could be the ideal place for him to regain his form and confidence.
The move makes perfect sense for Liverpool as well as the player. The Reds are set to recoup their entire investment and the player can kick-start his career with regular first team football elsewhere. Following the recovery of Joe Gomez, Ilori’s chances of playing in the first team looked very unlikely.
Add Sportslens to your Google News Feed!
