After a day of media reports that Liverpool have had a £10 million bid for Nathaniel Clyne turned down, we now seemingly have a day when the true price is set.

Make no bones about it the media are being briefed by someone in the Nathaniel Coyne saga, if we take it as read that it is not Saints then that leaves only the potential buyers, in this case Liverpool or someone connected with the player, although this could be a little more complicated than normal due to the fact that Clyne changed agents a month or so ago.

That could mean that some of the stirring could be coming from his ex agent, although I would say that the media stories are too precise for that to be totally the case, the buying club would usually be very close to this type of rumour.

That being the case is born out by how quickly the rumours have switched, there has been an initial story of a bid being rejected and that has been quickly followed by stories of how it will take £15 million to prised Clyne away from Saints.

Saints are almost certainly not telling anyone that at this stage so it is almost as if Liverpool are telling us just how much we should sell Clyne for.

The price being bandied around is £15 million and the question is whether that is a good price or not, the first reaction of many would be that given that Luke Shaw went to United last summer for £30 million, that half of that for Clyne is not a realistic price, the problem is for Saints tough that Clyne is not on a long term contract as Shaw was, he has a year left and that will drive down the price.

So £15 million although being a low price is probably nearer his value in the present situation than the money we got for Shaw, United were paying a premium for potential, the true value of both players in a normal situation would probably be around the £25 million mark.

So that being the case Saints if they are forced to sell if the player refuses to sign a new deal should be looking to get around £20 million from any potential buyer, less than that and it could be seen as Saints losing out, anything above that though and Saints have to consider snapping someone's hands off.

The reality of the situation though is that the player is waiting to see what happens at Wembley this afternoon, if Arsenal win and Saints are in the Europa League then they are in a far stronger position to persuade Clyne to sign a new deal. This would mean that going to Liverpool would offer the player little in terms of bettering his lot football wise, normally you would say that Liverpool would offer a better chance of glory but it is a club in disarray.

Would Clyne be improving his game and furthering his England career to go to Liverpool in their current situation, a manager who has lost the plot and seemingly the dressing room, a squad that has slots its best an most consistent player and is op heavy with players who are distinctly average and finally the top stars they have want away, surely Clyne would be mad to want to go to a club in this state.

Perhaps it will all come down to money, if Saints qualify for the Europa League it won't be football.

Photo: Action Images

OwenTheSaint added 11:31 - May 30 In my opinion Clyne is better than any of the three who left for Merseyside last summer, and I would consider him up there with, if not, the best right back in the Premier League. To me he is Champion League quality. So why go to Liverpool? If Liverpool's squad quality matched their clubs self pretensions then Clyne would definitely get CL football with them but the reality is, despite all their past glories and ex-pros spouting off as pundits, they are no longer the team they used to be, and are unlikely to qualify for the CL anytime soon. So if you are going to go Nathaniel, go to a team that can definitely offer you CL football and don't go to a team that can only offer you a chance of that level of European football in the future, especially when the team you are currently at can offer that same level of potential.

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corkcitysaint added 11:49 - May 30 For a young player, capped by England and with the potential to secure that RB position as his own for the coming years, we have got to get at least 20 mill or I feel we will have been shafted. The one issue I think that he really has to improve on is his final ball into the penalty area. Defensively and positionally I think he was very good last season and he has pace. Up to Xmas he was in great form, even scoring goals. After that, it dipped. Rarely though did his crosses find their target. I think he needs to improve on this whether he stays or goes.

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saintjeff52 added 15:24 - May 30 NO. I reckon, as we didn't pay a fortune for him, we should keep him for his Final Year. If he wants to cement his position as England's Right Back, then he will need to perform well for us. Incentive enough. Liverhampton are not the Club for him to gain Champions League. I'm not sure how much longer Rodgers has as Manager anyway. He is over rated, and overawed in the Job. He is not the Man to take them forward. With United 'dropping out', Nat's best bet would be to stay with us, sign the new Contract, play well next Season, and he'll only be 25yrs old then, still time enough to move to a Bigger Club, not Liverhampton, or Spuds. Should we be daft enough to sell him this year, then £20m is minimum. It will also show that he's moved for the Money, not ambition.

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Pecky3 added 19:43 - May 30 Well now Saints are in Europa League there is no point in him moving there. Anyway if I were Saints I would never sell a player to Liverpool again after Rodgers comments during the season!!
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SaintJez added 10:23 - May 31 not sure a move to Liverpool is a good one right now. Will be playing in all the same competitions as Saints and, with ever increasing uncertainty about the managers position, what if a new manager comes in that doesn't rate him - as has happened to Shaw. Sign a new contract Clyney! We are going places! Enjoy the ride..
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SaintBrock added 10:30 - May 31 Let's be clear about this, Saints defence did so well this year that every player was made to look world class but as Shaw's and Lovren's departure have shown, it is the system that has delivered these impressive results and allowed individuals to shine. Away from our system neither Shaw nor Lovren have reached those heights again. Bertrand now supersedes Shaw in the England pecking order and who would have predicted that twelve months ago? Mr Clyne should think very, very hard indeed about this before he decides finally to leave or to stay.

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