Liverpool
Premier League • England
Pep Lijnders confirms transfer needed for struggling Liverpool man who can be ‘different player’ at new club
Fabio Carvalho, Kostas Tsimikas and Roberto Firmino represent Liverpool
Liverpool assistant manager Pep Lijnders has weighed in on the situation of a frustrated Reds player who could land at a new club in January.
Following the rather underwhelming 0-0 draw with Manchester United at Anfield on Sunday, Liverpool will now turn their attention to the League Cup. Jurgen Klopp’s side will host West Ham United in the quarter-final on Wednesday evening as they look to make it into the last four of the competition.
Liverpool won the League Cup in 2022, completing the first step of their massive quadruple hunt. But they could only add the FA Cup to that achievement that year.
Man Utd are the current holders of the FA Cup, though they were knocked out of the competition in the round of 16 by Newcastle United.
Liverpool being in League Cup action normally means assistant boss Lijnders is on pre-match press conference duty, and that was again the case earlier this week.
The coach was asked about attacking midfielder Fabio Carvalho, who is around halfway through a season-long loan spell at RB Leipzig.
READ MORE: Liverpool allow Fulham to complete fantastic January coup with ‘agreement in principle’ reached
It has recently been suggested that Liverpool are in talks with Leipzig over terminating the transfer early, with Carvalho failing to start regularly and struggling with his form. Indeed, only one of his nine Bundesliga outings has lasted more than half an hour, and he has failed to register a single goal or assist in his 15 appearances across all competitions.
When asked about the Portuguese starlet, Lijnders made a big hint that he will secure a different move in January so he can become a ‘different’ – and more effective – player once again.
Pep Lijnders opens up on Liverpool player’s struggles
“It’s most important he finds rhythm; we all know a player with rhythm is a different player than a player without,” the Dutchman said (via Sports Mole).
“A player with confidence or without confidence, and a player who trains in a certain way, is a different player.
“He needs to find minutes, but it’s not up to me, it’s up to our directors to speak with the club and find the best solution for him. We all want the best for him because he is our player, so wait and see, but no decision [has been] made about that.”
It was an exciting move when Carvalho first joined Leipzig, as the German club are generally great at developing young players. The 21-year-old was expected to develop hugely in the Bundesliga before returning to Liverpool next summer and potentially pushing for a starting role under Klopp. But that has not happened, and Liverpool must now rescue the situation so his development does not stall.
One potential solution is for Carvalho to head back to Fulham on loan. He burst onto the scene at Craven Cottage and registered 10 goals and eight assists in 36 Championship games in the 2021-22 campaign, which prompted Liverpool to buy him that summer.