Football
Mike Whalley 10y

QPR agree fee with Liverpool for Fabio Borini

Liverpool have agreed to sell striker Fabio Borini to QPR for an initial fee of 10 million pounds.

Italy international Borini, who has made clear all summer that he wants to stay at Anfield, must now decide whether to move to increase his chances of first-team football.

Sources have told ESPN FC that the fee for Borini could rise to more than 12 million pounds with add-ons, but the deal will only be completed if the 23-year-old agrees to it.

Borini has been told by manager Brendan Rodgers that his playing chances will be limited if he stays at Anfield, with Daniel Sturridge and Mario Balotelli the first-choice forwards and Rickie Lambert the main back-up option.

Liverpool agreed a 14 million pound deal to sell Borini to Sunderland in July, but the Italian decided against a permanent move to the Stadium of Light.

Rodgers told the Liverpool Echo on Saturday that the striker needed to move for his own good, saying: "I think Fabio's situation is clear. For him, it's best to move on and get playing regularly. But that's something he has to decide."

Black Cats boss Gus Poyet has effectively given up on the compromise of a loan deal for Borini by deciding to bring in Liverpool defender Sebastian Coates.

Uruguay international centre-back Coates, 23, is in advanced talks over a move to Sunderland for the season.

Under Premier League rules, no club can borrow two players from the same team at the same time, meaning Borini could not follow Coates to Sunderland on loan -- it would have to be a permanent deal.

Borini was Rodgers' first signing as Reds manager, arriving for 10.5 million pounds from Roma in July 2012.

However, the striker had a difficult season following his arrival, missing three months with a broken foot suffered while on international duty in September 2012. He was ruled out for another two-and-a-half months when he dislocated his shoulder in February 2013.

Borini has scored only twice for Liverpool -- once in a 3-0 Europa League qualifying round victory over Belarusian side Gomel in August 2012, and again in a 6-0 Premier League win at Newcastle the following April.

Borini scored 10 goals on loan at Sunderland last season, with several of them coming in key victories.

He endeared himself to Black Cats fans by scoring in home and away derby victories league over Newcastle, as well as hitting three significant goals in their run to the Capital One Cup final, in which they were beaten by Manchester City and he scored the opener.

Arguably Borini's most significant goal of last season was the penalty that sealed a 2-1 Premier League victory at Stamford Bridge in April -- effectively ending Chelsea's title challenge and going a long way to securing Sunderland's top-flight survival.

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