Liverpool are continuing to keep Fulham midfielder Joao Palhinha on their shortlist for midfield additions.
With the new season just nine days away, the Reds are still badly in need of some midfield reinforcements. Recent weeks have seen Andre Trindade and Romeo Lavia emerge as big targets, but neither move seems imminent.
As a result, you’d hope Liverpool have a back-up plan in case they can’t bring in their top two targets. With that in mind, The Daily Mail report that with the Reds ‘desperate’ for new blood, Palhinha is still an option.
But with both Fulham and Palace demanding big fees for their respective players, those two also look difficult to do. The Cottagers were previously quoting as high as £90m for Palhinha. Having reportedly rejected an offer of £40m from West Ham, they obviously want big money.
Although it would be unwise to write them off just yet, Liverpool’s transfer window so far has been a real mess.
They appeared to be in good shape with the arrivals of Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai sorted by the early days of July. But since then, it’s all gone very much downhill.
The unexpected departures of Jordan Henderson and Fabinho may have brought extra money into the coffers, but Liverpool are yet to spend it.
As every day passes, the failure to secure replacements for either player before allowing them to go seems like an almighty mistake.
From here on in, transfer fees are only going to get bigger for Liverpool. As clubs start to prepare for new seasons, they’ll add an extra five or 10 million to any deal. With the Reds known to be desperate, another five or 10 could then follow.
Consequently, they need to get something tied up before the Premier League season starts. The mood needs lifting.
For what it’s worth, we don’t think it’s likely at all that Palhinha will end up being the player they get. For one thing, he’s injured right now anyway. Doucoure feels more possible, but we still think Lavia and Andre are the ones to watch.
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