Liverpool are now in talks to sell defender left out of Arne Slot’s pre-season squad

Having been omitted from the Liverpool squad for pre-season at the AXA Training Centre, Billy Koumetio is now subject of transfer interest from Scotland.

With Arne Slot beginning pre-season with a squad largely made up of academy players, the absence of Koumetio and Rhys Williams was telling.

The centre-backs are both over-age when it comes to the U21s squad, with Koumetio turning 22 in November and Williams already 23, meaning a decision had to be made over their omission.

And with the writing on the wall, progress appears to be being made when it comes to finding the Frenchman a new club this summer.

According to Le Parisien journalist Marc Mechenoua, talks are underway with Scottish side Dundee United over a deal that will almost certainly be permanent, rather than a loan.

Koumetio is into the final year of his contract, meaning Liverpool will be required to sell this summer to avoid losing him on a free transfer in 2025.

However, it should be noted that Dundee United’s transfer Business is almost exclusively restricted to free transfers and nominal fees, with their record outlay still the £750,000 paid to sign Steven Pressley from Coventry in 1995.

That suggests that, if Koumetio were to head to Tannadice Park, it is unlikely to be for the sum Liverpool would have perhaps hoped for when he first made his breakthrough at the club.

If he were to depart on loan again, the club would require him to first agree a new contract, effectively to preserve his value in future transfer windows.

The past two seasons have seen Koumetio farmed out on loan, though none of those proved successful as he was recalled from spells with Austria Wien and USL Dunkerque and played just once for Blackburn.

A player who once appeared on the cusp of Jurgen Klopp‘s first team is now in desperate need of a fresh start, with a switch to Scotland a promising one.

The likes of Owen Beck, Leighton Clarkson, Luke Chambers, Jack Bearne, Oludare Olufunwa, Luis Longstaff and Morgan Boyes – all former team-mates of Koumetio’s – have enjoyed success north of the border in recent years.

Meanwhile, another Liverpool academy winger looks to have caught Slot’s eye.