Liverpool £21.5m midfield deal meets ‘complication’ as club may put foot down at vital moment
Liverpool could be met with complications in their pursuit of Fluminense midfielder Andre, as the Brazilian side “really want” to keep him during their Copa Libertadores campaign.
Midfield moves have dominated headlines when it comes to Liverpool this summer. They’ve lost two big names in Jordan Henderson and Fabinho, as well as Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Naby Keita and James Milner.
They’ve signed Dominik Szoboszlai and Alexis Mac Allister, but will need to recruit further given how many midfield assets they’ve lost. They’ve reportedly settled on Fluminense midfielder Andre as one of those potential acquisitions.
The Reds are apparently ‘close’ to lodging a bid for the Brazilian, which would total around £21.5million. Attention only shifted to Andre recently, as Jurgen Klopp’s side seem resigned to defeat over a move for Romeo Lavia.
But there could be further complications in their quest to shore up the midfield ranks. Fluminense could apparently put their foot down over the transfer, as while they may be forced to sell in the next year, as per South American football expert Tim Vickery, they’ll want to keep Andre while their Copa Libertadores campaign continues.
“There’s a complication here. Money talks, but how loudly does it talk when the club are looking to win the Copa Libertadores for the first time in history?” Vickery said on Sky Sports.
“They’re in the knockout stages, they should get through next week against Argentinos Juniors. Then the quarter final’s right at the end of the month, just before the window slams shut.
“That is a potential complication with this deal.
“They know they have to sell him, if they don’t sell him in this window, they’re going to have to sell him in the next, but the stakes are raised by the fact that Fluminense really want to keep him while they’re still in the Copa Libertadores.”
Indeed, if Fluminense’s cup run keeps going, they might well keep Andre throughout the tournament. If they go beyond the quarter final, the window will have shut, and Liverpool might be given no chance to make the signing.
Even if the Brazilian outfit don’t make it to that point, the Reds would still have a very small window at the back end of the window to get it done, which could mean it’s not possible.
They’ll have to think about if it’s worth doing so, or if they shift attention to another midfielder so they don’t have to go through that headache.
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