Liverpool rejected a £4.5million bid from Leeds United for winger Ryan Kent during the summer transfer window, The Liverpool Echo have reported.

It was reported earlier in the summer that Kent was one of a number of targets identified by Leeds boss Marcelo Bielsa in a bid to strengthen his side in the wide areas of the pitch, and it now appears that the Yorkshire side did indeed attempt to bring the winger to Elland Road this summer.

According to the latest reports, Leeds saw a £4.5million bid for Kent rejected the day before the window closed in England, and the Championship outfit now looked to have missed out on their long term target for good.

It was confirmed on Monday that Kent had rejoined Rangers on a permanent basis on the final day of the Scottish transfer window, having spent last season on loan with Steven Gerrard's side.

Reports have claimed that the Glasgow club will pay £6.5million upfront for Kent, a fee which could rise £7.5million depending on addons.

That fee represents a significant reduction from the £12million Liverpool had originally demanded for the 22-year-old, although it is still a considerable increase on the offer received from Leeds.

The Verdict

I'm quite surprised by this.

Given the type of fees that were being discussed around Kent earlier in the summer, an offer of £4.5million for the winger feels somewhat optimistic from Leeds, and it is perhaps no surprise that it didn't pay off.

Indeed, although Liverpool appear not to have got what they wanted for Kent initially, they have still managed to make themselves more money by hanging on from that bid by Rangers later in the window.

Then again, with the likes of Pablo Hernandez, Jack Harrison and Helder Costa all already on the books for this season, it wasn't exactly like Leeds were under a huge amount of pressure to add to their attacking options when they made that bid for Kent.