Antoine Semenyo is a free bird — where will he land?

The goods from the Vitality Stadium never go out of style. Bournemouth were the most attractive boutique of the summer transfer market, and it seems they’ll be one again in winter. The team from England’s south coast could lose yet another important player — this time probably their very best one: Antoine Semenyo.

The Ghanaian winger has become the hottest topic in English club football these days, after reports emerged that he has a release clause in his Bournemouth contract — a detail that lit up the radar of the biggest clubs in the country.

Until now, members of the “big six” (and everyone else, of course) had to sit down and negotiate with Bournemouth’s board, but that will no longer be necessary. All they would need to do is place around 65 milion pounds — roughly 74 milion euros — on the table and take Semenyo away from Vitality Stadium. Naturally, with his approval.

The frenzy around the 25-year-old winger has been going on for a while. There was already a chance last summer for Semenyo to move, but since they had already lost Dango Ouattara, Milos Kerkez, and Illia Zabarnyi, Bournemouth did everything possible to keep their winger. It turned out to be the perfect decision — Semenyo already has six goals and three assists — though the decision came at a cost.

To convince him to reject approaches from clubs such as Tottenham and Manchester United, Bournemouth offered Semenyo a new five-year contract that included a release clause, giving him an easier exit when the next opportunity arose. The former Bristol City player signed it in early July, easing the club’s headaches.

Manchester United then turned their attention to Bryan Mbeumo, while Tottenham settled for Mohammed Kudus. And although the former Ajax player adapted quickly to his new environment, the London club is still not satisfied with its attacking line — so six months later they might look to add his compatriot Semenyo.

Sky Sports reports that Tottenham have not cooled their interest in Semenyo, but they are far from the only ones. In fact, their opinion may matter the least, as the same source (and others) claim that Manchester City and Liverpool are also on alert.

City have marked the right-wing position as one of their two priority targets for the January window, and Liverpool could also use reinforcements there since Mohamed Salah will be away for most of January at the Africa Cup of Nations. Unlike Semenyo, whose Ghana failed to qualify. From that perspective, signing Semenyo would make perfect sense for Liverpool if they moved early in the winter window — because even if Egypt reach the final, Salah would return around January 20. Besides, the Reds would need to move quickly regardless, since the clause can only be activated within a set timeframe to give Bournemouth time to find a replacement.

Is this the new African player at Liverpool — a replacement for Salah?

Some media claim Liverpool have been working on this deal for several months, giving them a potential advantage. But what could truly tip the scales in favor of the defending champions is their sporting director, Richard Hughes, who performed the same role at Bournemouth before moving to Anfield — and was responsible for signing Semenyo from Bristol City for around 10 million euros.

While some English outlets insist that Semenyo will push for a January transfer, Sky Sports claims the opposite — that the 25-year-old is annoyed by such rumors and wouldn’t mind staying until the summer. In that scenario, Bournemouth would gain a lot sportingly, but lose financially, since the value of the release clause would drop. How much — no one knows.

Cherry on top of Guinness World Records: Kluivert makes history with three penalties

“I try not to think too much about it. I’m trying to stay in the moment as much as I can. You see what’s being written — I see it too — I’m not oblivious, but I’m trying to stay focused. When they (his former teammates) left in the summer, there was a lot of interest and back-and-forth with the club. But in my mind, I knew the manager had something planned this year. The way we finished last season was so good, and we could continue in the same way, especially with the players we brought in. I wasn’t too sure about my decision at first, but we’ve progressed since then. I’m glad I committed to staying here because I’m enjoying every moment,” Semenyo recently told Sky Sports.