Fabrizio Romano has said that two midfielders who’ve been linked with Liverpool are now ‘ready for the next step’ in their respective careers.

The Reds continue to admire Florentino Luis of Benfica (Graeme Bailey) and have also been strongly interested in Fluminense’s Andre Trindade, for whom they’re believed to be in ‘pole position’ (Pete O’Rourke).

In his latest Daily Briefing for CaughtOffside, the Italian addressed where things stand with both players regarding the possibility of a move to Anfield in 2024.

Romano said: “Firstly, we’re seeing Florentino Luis’ name coming up a lot. Some fans have been asking me about links with Liverpool, and also with Manchester United, but I’m afraid I’m not aware of anything concrete at this stage. We had those links also in the summer but nothing concrete happened.

“The only club trying to sign Luis in July was Nottingham Forest but Benfica rejected every approach. Still, I personally believe he’s absolutely ready to make the next step in his career, he’s a very good player.

“Another name coming up with Liverpool is talented young Fluminense midfielder Andre. I think he could have a chance to move in 2024, but we will see what happens in terms of negotiation with Fluminense – it won’t be easy as they are always strong in negotiations. But Andre is absolutely ready for the next step – he’s very talented, and has a great mentality.”

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Both players would be fantastic additions at the base of Liverpool’s midfield if they were to sign for Jurgen Klopp’s side.

Florentino has proven to be a powerfully combative and technically brilliant cog in the Benfica machine, as illustrated by stats from FBref profiling the last 12 months of his career.

The 24-year-old ranks among the top 1% of midfielders in Europe for tackles (3.94) and interceptions (2.64) per game, with his pass completion rate of 89.1% placing him in the 96th percentile for that metric among his positional peers.

Meanwhile, Andre has been one of the starts of Fluminense’s run to the Copa Libertadores final, recording their second-best passing average (93%) while winning far more tackles (24) and making more blocks (20) than anyone in their squad during that campaign, as per FBref.

Of those two players, the latter seems the more likely acquisition for Liverpool given that they appear to be further along the tracks for him than Florentino.

If the Reds were to get either of them through the door next year, it’d complete their seismic midfield rebuild since the end of last season and, once and for all, give them that dominant presence in the number 6 position.

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Graeme Bailey has highlighted one defensive midfielder who Liverpool admire ‘a lot’ and has stood out for his current club.

During the summer transfer window, Neil Jones cited Florentino Luis as a name to ‘look out for’ when it came to potential replacements for Fabinho at Anfield, with the Reds having reportedly sent scouts to watch him earlier this year.

The Benfica destroyer still seems to be on the radar at Merseyside, judging by comments from the 90min journalist on the Talking Transfers Podcast.

Bailey said: “A lot of people like Florentino Luis, Neves’ midfield partner at Benfica. Liverpool like him a lot and Manchester United have had a look as well, but everyone when they watch Benfica [says] this is the guy standing out.”

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As outlined by Jones during the summer, Florentino’s former underage coach Joao Tralhao gave this glowing appraisal of the midfielder: ‘I do think he has the ceiling to be one of these top midfield players’.

The coach also equated the 24-year-old to Fabinho and Casemiro for the ‘untold amounts of work’ he undertakes in matches, with the Benfica destroyer a player who ‘gets stuck in’ and ‘wins tackles’.

Such a selfless footballer is one that any manager and teammate would love, and the statistics back up Bailey’s assertion about the Portuguese ace being a standout player at the Estadio da Luz.

As per WhoScored, he boasts the second-highest tackling average (3.2 per game) and the highest rate of interceptions (2.2 per match) in Roger Schmidt’s squad, marking himself out as a diligent engine room operator who excels in winning back possession for his team.

With the number 6 role highlighted by several Liverpool reporters for The Athletic as the biggest weakness in Jurgen Klopp’s side right now, a player of Florentino’s ilk could well be worth pursuing ahead of a potential swoop in 2024.

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We didn’t learn anything new at Stamford Bridge yesterday.

Liverpool have brilliant attackers capable of incisive moments. Yep. As per usual. But there were gaping holes in midfield due to the fact we played three attacking players in there, one of whom in Cody Gakpo is simply a striker. No wonder he looked lost.

We also lost our heads after conceding one goal and let moments affect us emotionally – just like last season. Despite the outrageous failure not to award us a blatant penalty in the second-half, 1-1 in hindsight is not a bad result, given they had 65% of the ball.

It’s not ridiculous to say the team that had Moises Caicedo starting in midfield on Sunday would’ve ended up with three points.

How brilliant would it have been if we’d got the Ecuadorian over the line? Literally the perfect player for what we need. He fights, scraps, runs tirelessly, tackles, intercepts and injects energy into his side’s press and counter-attacks.

He’s Chelsea’s now, with the deal all but done. However, it looks like we have a good chance  of signing Romeo Lavia. The cogs are turning and there is now guarantee, as the Caicedo deal proves, but we have at least had a £60m offer accepted, according to Sky Sports.

Chelsea won’t give in easily though and were clearly furious at Liverpool’s attempt to hijack the Caicedo deal, so are now using their financial clout to make a point. It all seems driven by the ego of Todd Boehly, and how they can still adhere to FFP rules is anyone’s guess, but they’re undeniably building a mouthwateringly strong midfield. Imagine adding Caicedo and Lavia to Enzo Fernandez, the best player on the park at Stamford Bridge by a country mile.

So what do Liverpool do? First, we get the Lavia deal over the line, even if £60m is stupid money. We’ve not played this well, but at some point, you need to take your medicine. At 19 though, Lavia is not enough. There need to be more names through the door after the Belgian.

Ibrahim Sangare – PSV

Ibrahim Sangare could be the next through the door, and it won’t be a tough one to make happen.

The PSV star has a £32m release clause, which given the over-inflated market, is cheap.

“There are big clubs that are interested, such as Bayern Munich. Ibrahim is also on the list at Paris Saint-Germain and Liverpool, but he is not yet a priority there. Nottingham Forest had already made an offer, but that was not enough,” his agent’s brother Kiki Musampa told  ESPN.

Sangare is an out and out holding midfielder. He’s big, rangy and physical, with technical skills to boot. He’s nowhere near as quick and combative as Caicedo, but right now, beggars can’t be choosers. At 25-years-old, his best years are ahead of him and he will plug a gap for us centrally.

He’s not Caicedo, but who is?

Florentino Luis

Lavia and Luis by the end of August and I’m content.

The 23-year-old stars for Benfica, a team we already have a good relationship with after the Darwin Nunez deal. As we know though, they don’t sell for cheap – and Luis has a monstrous €120m release-clause.

This is Anfield linked us with him back in July, although it’s important to note their have been no concrete links since.

Stylistically, he’s the most similar player to Caicedo on the market. Skinny, tough and durable; Luis enjoyed a brilliant campaign last time out and relishes the nasty, physical side of the game. He can play, too.

We struggled last season because Fabinho lost his bite. Latvia doesn’t have much aggression either, so it’s imperative we secure someone who fights.

Goncalo Inacio

It’s not just the midfield that requires attention, of course.

The defence is weak and we were lucky to only concede one versus Chelsea. Ignacio has become a target according to the not-very-reliable Football Insider, but he does tick a lot of boxes.

Firstly, he has an affordable €39m release-clause, and at 21, he’s the right age-profile for the rebuild. He is also left-footed, so will work on the left of our back-three, given Trent Alexander-Arnold is often now in midfield, which changes our formation.

Inacio is technically strong and fast and with plenty of room to improve. Given Andy Robertson’s decline and the fact he is not a natural in his new position, a new left-sided centre-back is essential.

We need two defensive midfielders and a centre-back.

The money is there to be spent. After all, we just tried to shell out £111m on one player…

Let’s use it to bring in three, instead.

The post Editor’s Column: What next? Lavia, Sangare, Ignacio and Luis – Liverpool need to move fast appeared first on The Empire of The Kop.

Neil Jones has revealed that Liverpool ‘have liked’ Florentino Luis as a player and said that he’d be ‘amazed’ if the 23-year-old’s name hasn’t been discussed among the Anfield hierarchy.

The Benfica midfielder was cited by the journalist as someone for Reds fans to ‘look out for’ in terms of potential replacements for Fabinho if the Brazilian departs for Al-Ittihad in the near future.

The reporter also told Empire of the Kop’s Substack that the Portuguese talent is stylistically quite similar to the 29-year-old he could theoretically replace in Jurgen Klopp’s side.

Jones elaborated on the chances of Liverpool making a move for Florentino when speaking to The Redmen TV‘s Journo Insight Show, saying: “I think he’s a player that Liverpool have liked certainly, and they’re not alone. Manchester United are another one definitely that have looked at him.

“I asked about Florentino Luís maybe springtime. It was told to me that Liverpool and Manchester United like this player. I was told, ‘Yeah, but no, we don’t need him.’ That’s changed obviously.

“Benfica and Porto are the two best-selling clubs in terms of developing talent for a couple of years and getting incredible fees. How much would you have to pay to get him?

“I spoke to his former coach João Tralhão and he said he’s like a Fabinho, a Casemiro. He gets through untold amounts of work – big, long legs, wins headers, gets stuck in, wins tackles. Certainly, in the group stage of the Champions League, I think he was the top for tackles and interceptions per-90.

“I wouldn’t say I expect Liverpool to go in for him at all, but I’ll be amazed if his name hasn’t come up in conversations. It has previously over scouting. I would be amazed if it hasn’t come up since this came about.”

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Jones has been quite vocal in recent days about advocating Florentino as a player who’d be worth considering for Liverpool if Fabinho were to leave, given that the Reds would only have 18-year-old Stefan Bajcetic as a natural number 6 if the Brazilian moves to Al-Ittihad.

Like the journalist has said, the landscape of LFC’s summer transfer window has been altered in recent days by the prospective exits of the 29-year-old and Jordan Henderson to Saudi Arabia, with Klopp’s midfield at risk of looking light if both of those move on from Merseyside.

The Benfica powerhouse’s statistics from last season made for very good reading. He averaged more interceptions per game (3.2) than anyone else in the Champions League group stage, while only 16 players topped his average of three tackles per match (WhoScored).

Those figures look even more impressive when you consider that he came up against Juventus and Paris Saint-Germain in that phase of the competition, so Florentino has proven that he can handle some of the foremost attacks in European and indeed world football.

Jones is quite right in saying that it’d be incomprehensible if the 23-year-old’s name hasn’t been mentioned in the corridors of the Anfield boardroom as a player worth targeting this summer, particularly if Fabinho departs.

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Neil Jones has shared what he was told about Florentino Luis by one of the player’s former coaches.

The Benfica midfielder was recently namechecked by the journalist as someone to ‘look out for’ in terms of possible replacements for Fabinho at Liverpool, should the Brazilian depart for Al-Ittihad.

The reporter even cited the 23-year-old as ‘a very Fabinho-type player’ in terms of his attributes on the pitch, and the verdict from Joao Tralhao – his one-time youth coach at the Lisbon club – suggests that he’d be a fine successor to the Reds’ current number 3.

In his latest Empire of the Kop Substack column, Jones said of Florentino: “From what I’ve seen of him and what I know, his defensive work is huge – he gets good numbers in interceptions, tackles, breaking up play, winning possession. It’s scary. I think he’s right up with the best in Europe in the Champions League and top five leagues.

“Style-wise, if you’re looking at a Fabinho replacement and you’re wanting a Fabinho, the size of him, the type of player he is, the position he plays… Joao Tralhao, who I spoke to for a piece, said to me ‘I do think he has the ceiling to be one of these top midfield players’.”

The journalist added that the 23-year-old is someone who Liverpool ‘have definitely looked at’ previously.

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Although there don’t appear to be any live links to Anfield with Florentino at the moment, the Reds are thought to have scouted him at Benfica matches earlier this year.

As Jones mentioned, the midfielder boasts some highly impressive statistical returns, as evidenced by figures from FBref.

He ranks among the top 4% of positional peers in Europe over the past year for a number of core metrics such as tackles (3.48), interceptions (2.67) and completed passes (78.79) per match, as well as pass completion (89.7% accuracy).

While the quantitative information paints an encouraging picture, the glowing assessment from a coach in Tralhao who worked with Florentino as a teenager adds further weight to his CV in terms of a potential defensive midfield target for Liverpool to consider this summer.

He started all 10 of Benfica’s matches in their run to the Champions League quarter-finals last season (Transfermarkt), marking him out as a central figure in one of Europe’s leading teams, and as a player who’s had plenty of exposure already to the highest level in club football.

The 23-year-old certainly appears to be someone the Reds ought to be contemplating seriously as a prospective replacement for Fabinho at Anfield, especially if the Brazil international leaves for Saudi Arabia in the near future.

#Ep80 of The Empire of the Kop Podcast: Fabinho & Jordan Henderson… going, going, gone?

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Neil Jones has named one midfielder from the Portuguese top flight as a potential ‘like-for-like replacement’ for Fabinho at Liverpool.

The Brazil international has been the subject of a £40m bid from Saudi Arabian outfit Al-Ittihad and hasn’t travelled with the Reds squad to their pre-season camp in Germany.

Those factors strongly hint at a potentially imminent departure for the 29-year-old, who’ll need replacing in the number 6 role at Anfield.

While Romeo Lavia has been a much-cited transfer target, and other names like Kalvin Phillips and Sofyan Amrabat have also been floated, Jones identified a player from the Primeira Liga as one to ‘look out for’.

Speaking on his new YouTube channel Neil Jones: Covering Liverpool, the journalist said: “A name that I would urge you to look out for is Florentino Luis, who plays for Benfica. I think he’s one who could come into consideration.

“He’s a very Fabinho-type player in terms of defensive midfielder, gets about the pitch, gets his foot in, strong in the tackle, really good defensively. If Liverpool are looking for a like-for-like replacement for Fabinho, they could do a lot worse than look at Florentino Luis.

“Just keep an eye on that name. I haven’t heard if there’s anything moving yet in that regard but it’s certainly one I would keep in mind.”

Florentino is a name who’s been on Liverpool’s radar for a while, with reports back in March detailing that scouts from Merseyside had been dispatched to keep tabs on the player.

His stats certainly make for impressive reading – as per FBref, he ranks among the top 4% of positional peers in Europe for tackles (3.48), interceptions (2.67) and completed passes (78.79) per game over the past 12 months, and also for pass completion with an 89.7% success rate.

Having also played in all of Benfica’s games in their run to the Champions League quarter-finals last season, the 23-year-old can boast high-level experience, so he may indeed be a name to watch over the rest of the transfer window.

You can see Jones’ comments on Florentino below (from 2:44), via Neil Jones: Covering Liverpool on YouTube:

The post ‘Keep in mind’ – Neil Jones namedrops ‘very Fabinho-type player’ as one for Reds to ‘look out for’ appeared first on The Empire of The Kop.

Liverpool are believed to have sent scouts to watch Benfica midfielder Florentino Luis in action recently.

The 23-year-old has been a fixed presence in Roger Schmidt’s team this season, featuring in 42 matches in the current campaign (Transfermarkt) and helping his side to reach the Champions League quarter-finals.

Having signed Darwin Nunez from the Lisbon club last summer, the Reds appear to be eyeing another possible raid on the Estadio da Luiz.

According to Graeme Bailey on Twitter, Liverpool and Tottenham are ‘amongst the clubs checking on Benfica starlets Antonio Silva and Florentino Luis’.

Liverpool and Tottenham amongst the clubs checking on Benfica starlets Antonio Silva and Florentino Luis.@90min_Football https://t.co/eXShvp7Jaw

— Graeme Bailey (@GraemeBailey) March 7, 2023

Along with his colleague Sean Walsh, the journalist mentioned in the corresponding report for 90min that the two Premier League clubs had dispatched scouting teams to watch the duo in their side’s 2-0 win over Famalicao last Friday.

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The 23-year-old midfielder has drawn glowing praise from former Benfica coach Joao Tralhao, who told GOAL: “He is the kind of player every coach would like to have in their squad.

“He’s an amazing boy, a hard worker, calm, professional, always prepared to listen and he is a proper team player. He doesn’t think only of himself.”

Liverpool’s midfield has all too often seemed lightweight in recent months, and Florentino could be an ideal remedy to any such shortcomings.

The industrious Portuguese destroyer excels at breaking up the play, averaging 2.6 tackles and 2.5 interceptions per game this season (WhoScored).

Thiago is the only Reds player with a better tackling average (2.9 per match), while nobody at Anfield comes close to the Benfica midfielder’s interception rate (WhoScored).

Florentino could undoubtedly add plenty of steel in the middle of the park for Liverpool, but inevitably he comes with a frighteningly high release clause – €120m (£107m) according to O Jogo (via Sport Witness).

Unless FSG and co can pull off some shrewd negotiations to get that figure down, it could unfortunately be too much of an obstacle to overcome.

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