Curtis Jones responds after Andoni Iraola tells him to sign new Liverpool contract
Liverpool midfielder Curtis Jones has rejected manager Andoni Iraola’s request to sign a new contract and wants to join Inter Milan in the summer transfer window, according to a report.
Jones is out of contract at Liverpool in the summer of 2027.
The 25-year-old midfielder has been part of the Liverpool fabric since 2010, having developed at the Premier League club’s youth academy before establishing himself in the first team.
Jones has won the Premier League title twice, the FA Cup once, and the EFL Cup on two occasions with Liverpool so far in his career.
The England international midfielder has scored 22 goals and given 25 assists in 228 appearances for Liverpool so far in his career.
However, Jones’s days at Liverpool appear to be numbered, with the midfielder rejecting new Reds manager Iraola’s request to sign a new deal.
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Curtis Jones rejects new Liverpool contract
According to Corriere dello Sport, Jones ‘only wants Inter’ and has already rejected the chance to join Liverpool’s Premier League rivals, Nottingham Forest.
Liverpool are willing to sell Jones, but the Merseyside club want €40million (£34.2m), a fee that is too much for Serie A champions Inter.
‘Inter have made a couple of enquiries about a lower fee’, according to the Italian publication, but Liverpool are not budging.
Jones, though, wants to join Inter and has already rejected Iraola’s personal appeal to sign a new contract and stay at Liverpool.
The report has stated: ‘On Viale Liberazione, they’re counting on the Reds offering some sort of discount, faced with the prospect of losing Jones without receiving a single euro.
‘After all, if they were initially adamant, the midfielder has been no different.
‘Nottingham Forest tried to court him, but he didn’t betray his promise.
‘And he didn’t change his mind even when Iraola, Liverpool’s new manager, expressed his faith in him, effectively inviting him to renew his contract.
‘He has only Inter in mind.’
Jones made the headlines for the wrong reasons last week when he was involved in a heated argument with his Liverpool teammate Dominik Szoboszlai.
Liverpool registered a 1-0 win over Wrexham at Yankee Stadium last Thursday.
After the full-time whistle, Jones, Szoboszlai and later Kostas Tsimikas argued with one another as the team were walking across the pitch to applaud the Liverpool fans.
During the game, Szoboszlai gave the captain’s armband to Tsimikas rather than Jones when he was substituted.
During the argument after full time, the cameras caught Tsimikas throwing the armband onto the ground.
In July, Iraola said that he wanted Jones to sign a new contract and enthused: “I rate Curtis very highly.
“For me he is a great, great player, and I hope he can continue with us and continue performing the way he has been performing.”
Iraola likes Liverpool duo McConnell and Koumas
Along with Jones, Iraola is also said to rate 21-year-old Liverpool midfielder James McConnell and 20-year-old winger Lewis Koumas highly.
Journalist Alan Nixon wrote on Patreon: “Liverpool boss Andoni Iraola has taken a shine to young pair James McConnell and Lewis Koumas in his first days in charge.
“The pair are wanted by clubs on loan and have previously been farmed out for experience with varying degrees of success.
“But Iraola may promote the pair to his first team squad and could involve them more after being impressed.
“Midfielder McConnell and attacker Koumas seem to have come on since their time away from Anfield and are now getting serious respect.”
