Liverpool favourites to sign Sam Byram but bookies expect him to stay

Sky Bet are offering odds of 1.33 that Byram will stay at Leeds United, despite head coach Steve Evans claiming that bids for the 22-year-old were highly likely in January. Byram’s contract expires at the end of this season and he turned down the offer of an extension earlier this month.

Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool were linked with the young right-sided versatile player, and Byram kept his name in lights with a classy equaliser in Leeds’ 1-1 draw at Nottingham Forest last night. The Anfield club are priced at 4.50 to strike a deal for Byram before the transfer window closes, with Norwich City at 7.00, West Ham United at 11.00 and Tottenham Hotspur at 13.00. Aston Villa, who have scouted Byram during Leeds United’s recent win at Wolves, are seen as 17.00 outsiders for his signature.

If Byram doesn’t sign a new contract, someone in the summer transfer window still has to pay about £2m for him because he is a young home grown player. So maybe someone will look for signing him in January with £5-7m to avoid the auction of three or four clubs looking to get the player under the compensation scheme.