Liverpool and Arsenal are heading to a tribunal after failing to agree compensation for 16-year-old prospect Vincent Joseph, who chose to leave Anfield last month.
The highly-rated striker had appeared for Liverpool's under-18 team but decided against signing a scholarship contract offered by the Merseyside club, which carried a deadline of July 1.
Joseph rejected the scholarship offer despite interest from major European clubs, including Premier League sides Manchester United and Chelsea, as well as German Bundesliga teams Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund.
Premier League champions Arsenal ultimately won the race to secure the signature of the talented number nine, but talks between the two English top-flight clubs have broken down over the valuation.
With both sides unable to find common ground during negotiations, the dispute is now on a collision course for a tribunal to determine the final compensation fee owed to Liverpool.
Previous Liverpool tribunal cases
Joseph is not the first young talent to leave Liverpool for another Premier League side in recent months. The previous teenager to make a similar move was 17-year-old England youth international midfielder Isaac Moran, who departed for Newcastle United earlier this year before signing a professional contract in March.
Liverpool and Newcastle were similarly unable to reach an agreement over compensation for Moran. A subsequent tribunal ordered Newcastle to pay a seven-figure fee to Liverpool, with the overall settlement for the midfielder having the potential to reach £5 million.
Domestic transfers of young players between English clubs often involve tribunal rulings when clubs cannot settle on training compensation. The Professional Football Compensation Committee oversees these cases to set fair market figures based on development investment.
Rivalry for domestic and European talent
The battle to sign the most promising young players in English football has become increasingly competitive and expensive in recent years.
Liverpool have also been active in recruiting high-profile youth talent, fending off competition from Premier League rivals Manchester City and Arsenal, as well as Spanish club Real Madrid, to sign 16-year-old winger Josh Abe this summer.
The Anfield club also secured dynamic attacking midfielder Erik Farkas, completing the transfer despite interest from Manchester City, Manchester United, and several teams across Germany and Spain.
However, Liverpool previously caused friction with Chelsea last year when they recruited England international Rio Ngumoha. The 17-year-old left Chelsea in September 2024 and moved to Merseyside because he believed Liverpool provided a superior pathway to first-team football, despite being considered the top player in his age group at the London club.
Ngumoha signed his first professional contract with Liverpool a year later, in September 2025. A Professional Football Compensation Committee tribunal ruled in February that Liverpool must pay Chelsea an initial fee of £2.8 million, which could rise to £4 million through add-ons, while Chelsea will also receive 20 percent of any profit if Ngumoha is sold in the future.
The teenager made an immediate impact for Liverpool in August, scoring on his Premier League debut at 16 years and 361 days old to become the youngest goalscorer in the history of the club.
