Liverpool transfers: ‘Golden’ Brazil star could join Klopp, as Reds backed to use ‘financial power’ to demolish Wolves
Midfielder Andre represents Brazil in friendly against Senegal
Liverpool could swat Wolves and Sporting aside by using their ‘financial power’ to land a rising Brazil star, according to a report.
Liverpool have had a strong Brazilian contingent under Jurgen Klopp, which involved Alisson, Fabinho and Roberto Firmino last term. However, Firmino recently left Liverpool following the expiry of his contract and went on to join Saudi Arabian club Al Ahli.
And the centre-forward will likely come up against Fabinho in the Saudi Pro League next term. Al Ittihad, who have already signed the likes of Karim Benzema and N’Golo Kante this summer, are getting closer to landing Fabinho. Al Ittihad have overcome a brief transfer scare to put themselves ‘on the verge’ of signing the 29-year-old, with a medical booked in.
Those departures will leave Alisson as the sole Brazilian representative in Klopp’s senior squad. But that could change as Liverpool are being tipped to win the race for Fluminense’s Andre.
He is a 22-year-old central defensive midfielder who recently burst into the Brazilian national team setup, winning his first cap in a friendly against Senegal last month.
Wolves have recently been linked with Andre. But according to the latest from Portuguese newspaper Record (via Sport Witness), they could miss out on him to Liverpool.
The report explains how Primeira Liga outfit Sporting are also interested in Andre, but it is Liverpool who are leading the race out of all three clubs thanks to their superior ‘financial power’.
Wolves previously would have been able to compete with Klopp’s side, though they are currently having to sell players after getting into financial difficulty.
New Liverpool target described as transfer ‘gold’
It is claimed Fluminense ‘know they have gold on their hands’ in Andre and therefore want a record fee to let him leave. They have put his price tag at €20million (£17.1m). Fluminense’s current record departure is Gerson, who left for Roma in an €18.5m deal in 2016, while the club also sold Richarlison to Watford for €12.4m in 2017.
Unfortunately for Liverpool, they may have to wait several months before being able to strike an agreement for Andre. This is because Fluminense want to keep him for the remainder of their domestic season before allowing him to head to Europe in January 2024.
One way around this would be for Liverpool to purchase Andre now before loaning him back to Fluminense for six months. But either way, Andre is unlikely to be playing in a Liverpool shirt until early next year.
£17.1m is clearly a lot of money for a player who has never operated outside of his native Brazil and is only just getting started on the international stage. However, Fluminense players tend to have good pedigree. As mentioned previously, Richarlison spent time with them before moving to England, while the club also helped to develop other well-known stars such as Thiago Silva, Marcelo and Joao Pedro. Due to this, there is a good chance Andre could end up being worth that £17.1m sum.
Of course, Liverpool’s priority in the defensive midfield area is Romeo Lavia. They are in advanced talks with Southampton over the Belgian.
But Liverpool could land Andre as well as Lavia to help replace Fabinho. Once Andre gets used to life in the Premier League, he could push Lavia for his starting spot.
Klopp would ideally like a vastly experienced midfielder to join and succeed from Fabinho. But Liverpool simply don’t have the necessary money available, forcing him to look at younger solutions.
Meanwhile, a Liverpool player has admitted he ‘can imagine’ leaving Merseyside for good next year.
