Report: £13m Rated Liverpool Midfielder set to join Premier League rival

Liverpool
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According to reports coming from Liverpool Echo, Liverpool midfielder Joe Allen is set to join fellow Premier League club Stoke City for £13m.

Although the Welshman was initially reluctant to join Stoke City, it was a chat with Stoke boss Mark Hughes which convinced him to leave the Merseyside.

In addition to Stoke, Swansea were also after the signature of the 26-year-old. However, following the demand of £13m from Liverpool for Allen, Swansea were no longer pursuing their former employee.

Allen arrived at Liverpool in the summer of 2012 for a fee of around £15m from Welsh club Swansea.

Dubbed infamously as the Welsh Xavi by Brendan Rodgers, Allen went on to become an integral part of the Liverpool squad under his tutelage.

However, after the arrival of Jurgen Klopp in September last year, playing time was limited for the Welshman.

Moreover, the arrivals of both Marko Grujic and Gini Wijnaldum further aggravated the concerns of Allen.

With both of them playing in the same central midfield role as Joe Allen, their arrival did all but to confirm his departure. Consequently, due to lack of playing time, it seems as if Allen is now ready to take the next step in his career.