Klopp cites budget constraints amid Bellingham questions

LIVERPOOL, England (AP) — If Borussia Dortmund star Jude Bellingham is on the move this summer, it’s becoming clear that Liverpool won’t be the destination.

Jurgen Klopp said Friday regarding expensive transfers that sometimes a team must “step aside and do different stuff.”

The Liverpool manager was responding to questions about reports the Premier League club has dropped its pursuit of the 19-year-old Bellingham, who could bring a record transfer fee for Dortmund. Manchester City and Real Madrid are among the clubs interested.

Klopp said his answer was “not about Jude Bellingham” specifically but that sometimes the price tag is too high.

“I never understood why we constantly talk about things we theoretically cannot have,” he said at a news conference ahead of Liverpool’s game at Leeds on Monday.

“We cannot have six players in a summer (and) everybody’s 100 million for example,” he said. “You have to realize what you can do and then you have to work with that. How much money do we have available, and then you have to work with that.”

Liverpool is 12 points back of the final Champions League spot with nine games remaining. Upgrading the midfield is seen as a priority in the offseason.

“We are not children,” Klopp said. “Ask a 5-year-old at Christmas ‘what do you want for Christmas’ and they tell you ‘I want to have, I don’t know, a Ferrari.’ You wouldn’t say ‘that’s a good idea,’ you would say ‘no that’s too expensive and anyway you cannot drive it.’ That’s how it is.

“What we need and what we want, we try absolutely everything to get it. But there are moments when you have to accept that these or that is not possible for us and then you just step aside and do different stuff.”

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