Liverpool quoted £100m for Prem midfielder in January; Tottenham ‘pull’ not strong enough for star

Jose Enrique has detailed how he’d “love” Joao Palhinha at Liverpool, but Fulham will ask for £100million in January, and Tottenham don’t have the “pulling power” for him.

There aren’t a lot of obvious weaknesses in the Reds’ side at the moment. Indeed, they’re top of the Premier League for a reason, having found ways to win when they looked down and out on a few occasions.

If one slight weakness was to be picked out, it would probably be the holding-midfield position.

Liverpool lost Fabinho in the summer, and while they recruited a number of midfielders to replace he and other players in the centre of the park, they didn’t get anyone with the same profile as the Brazilian.

Alexis Mac Allister has tended to play in a deeper role, but he’s not as well suited to the position as some would be.

As such, Jurgen Klopp is on the lookout for a holding-midfielder to put the finishing touches to his side.

Fulham man Palhinha has been heavily linked with not only the Reds, but a number of other Premier League and European outfits of late – he failed with a late move to Bayern Munich in the summer.

Palhinha would be perfect for Liverpool according to Nigel Reo-Coker, who recently stated the Portuguese is “the one they need” adding the “need to address” the midfield role.

Enrique suggests £100m Palhinha move won’t happen

Former Liverpool man Enrique has agreed that he’d be the perfect fit, but does not feel a January transfer is particularly plausible given the fee Palhinha would command.

“I think Palhinha is a great player and I would love him at Liverpool. I think he is exactly the kind of player that Liverpool need in midfield,” Enrique told Grosvenor Sport.

“However, if they try to sign him in January then I think Fulham will ask for a fee that no-one is willing to pay. In the summer window it is a different story and I think something is more likely to happen with him then.

“In January, Fulham will probably ask for over £100million for him and no one is going to pay that, but they will be back for him in the summer.”

Tottenham ruled out by Enrique

Enrique has also ruled Tottenham out of the race for Palhinha, as he feels the other sides that are interested have a bigger pull than Spurs do.

“Joao Palhinha has been linked with Liverpool, Manchester United and Tottenham,” Enrique said.

“I don’t think you can put Tottenham in that conversation in terms of pulling power alongside the likes of Liverpool and United – they’re not the same.”

It’s strange that the former Liverpool man has ruled out Tottenham and not United, given the north London outfit are two places and five points ahead of the Red Devils in the league.

At this point, it’s not clear who’s got the best chance of landing Palhinha, but it may be true that a January move is going to be too expensive for most sides.

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