Liverpool striker Hugo Ekitike has an estimated transfer value of £116million despite being unavailable due to a long-term injury. The Frenchman has not played since rupturing his Achilles tendon in April and is not expected back until late 2026 or potentially even early next year.
Ekitike's value rises despite injury
Ekitike was signed from Eintracht Frankfurt in a £79million deal last summer and had a strong first seven months at Anfield with 17 goals before injury struck. Given the quality he has shown and as he is arguably yet to enter his prime years at 24, his value has only increased.
CIES Football Observatories, using a number of tools, have figured out that he is worth up to £116million. Market inflation and a rough price range of what a buying club would most likely pay are taken into account when working out a player's estimated transfer value.
Potential suitors and return timeline
In Ekitike's case, given his nationality, that is likely to be Paris Saint-Germain and the triple-figure deals for other players sees his £116m valuation make sense. That could potentially change depending on when Ekitike could return to action.
Andoni Iraola provided an update on the condition of some long-term absentees back in July with the update on Ekitike not too promising. He said: "In terms of order, I think the closest one to returning is [Giovanni] Leoni. After will be Conor [Bradley] and Hugo, but especially the last two are still way off. We are talking about months and still a lot of time out."
Gakpo could fill in as striker
The other two suffered serious knee injuries last season with Alexander Isak also missing a large portion of the campaign. The Swede will be needed for the majority of the season given Ekitike's injury but Iraola has hinted Cody Gakpo could play that role.
He said: "I think Cody can play as a 9. Not tried it pre-season because we don't have enough wingers. He knows what we need from him in his preferred position as a left-winger but I have spoken to him about his minutes as a 9. He's done it before and he can help us there."
However, there is no guarantee that the Dutchman is still at the club heading into September with Tottenham interested in signing him. Bradley Barcola joining from Paris Saint-Germain could allow him to leave but it seems likely he would only be free to move in if Liverpool also signed one of Yankuba Minteh and Ibrahim Mbaye or potentially both.
Liverpool look set to contest the new season with a new-look attack that could include two summer additions and Isak, who may well feel like a new signing if he hits the ground running.
