Chelsea believe Monaco star Lamine Camara is poised to join Liverpool after the Reds agreed terms with the midfielder, according to an Anfield insider.

Camara developed at Generation Foot in Senegal and French club FC Metz before joining Monaco for €15million in July 2024. Since then, he has made 85 appearances for Monaco and chipped in with seven goals and 12 assists.

The 22-year-old has developed a reputation as one of the best young central midfielders in Ligue 1. Camara is an all-rounder who excels at winning back possession before getting his team on the attack with either an incisive through ball or an accurate diagonal pass.

He’s been compared to PSG’s Fabian Ruiz thanks to his ability as a deep-lying playmaker, and to Manchester United’s Carlos Baleba due to his proficiency as a defensive midfielder.

Liverpool swiftly registered their interest in Camara after his deadline-day summer transfer to Chelsea collapsed.

Lewis Steele, who covers Liverpool for the Daily Mail, has now provided Anfield Index with the following update on the player: “Lamine Camara is a name that just won’t go away and even Chelsea sources I’ve spoke[n] to believe #LFC may have a deal in place with the player.

“With [Dominik] Szoboszlai & [Ryan] Gravenberch picking up injuries, Trey Nyoni being brilliant but only 19, you do wonder if this is one [Julian] Ward could bring forward.”

It looks like the Senegalese could become Liverpool’s first signing since Ward returned to Anfield as sporting director on September 26.

With Chelsea overtaking Liverpool in the race for Bournemouth star Alex Scott, Andoni Iraola and Ward have been forced to make Camara their new No 1 target.

Earlier this month, Football Insider claimed that Monaco had given Liverpool their green light to bid for Camara.

Chelsea previously agreed a €55m (then £47m) deal with the Ligue 1 outfit for him, but Monaco have since upped their demands to €70m (£58.5m).

Liverpool in strong position to land Lamine Camara

Liverpool, in contrast, have been tipped to start the bidding at £42m, meaning there may need to be several rounds of negotiations before a full agreement can be reached.

On October 20, Fabrizio Romano stated that Liverpool have been ‘tracking Camara for a long time’ and are ‘planning to do something important in midfield in 2027’.

Romano added that Liverpool see the player as a ‘future starter’ under Iraola, rather than simply a ‘backup’.

Iraola has asked the Liverpool hierarchy to bolster his midfield options next year, and Camara is currently the most likely player to join. Personal terms appear to be advancing, but there is still work to be done with Monaco.