With Fabinho leaving for Saudi Arabia, Liverpool seems to have lost out on finding an excellent replacement. The Brazilian will complete a £40 million transfer to Al-Ittihad, the reigning Saudi Pro League champions who have also signed Karim Benzema, N’Golo Kante, and Jota this summer, ending a five-year tenure at Anfield.
Given that Fabinho’s contract does not expire until 2026, Liverpool had not meant to lose the player during the current transfer window. However, a £40 million fee was too much to pass up. In 2018, the Reds spent the same sum to get him from Monaco.
However, Jurgen Klopp’s side appeared to need a new defensive midfielder earlier this summer even when the plan was for Fabinho to stay. Despite that, they did not make a move for Manuel Ugarte earlier this summer.
That was an opportunity missed given their scouting prowess in Portugal and their reported interest in the player. The tough-tackling Uruguayan, who was also liked by Chelsea, instead joined Paris Saint-Germain for £52m thanks to a release clause in his Sporting contract.
At just 22, Ugarte might have been an ideal long-term successor to Fabinho. The South American is not just a brilliant tackler but also excels with the ball both in terms of passing it and carrying it forward. He is a very well-rounded defensive midfielder already with his technical and physical attributes and he has the potential to be one of the world’s very best.
Ultimately Liverpool have been unfortunate with the timing of Fabinho’s exit. Had it been obvious at the start of the window that he might leave, they may have formed up their interest in Ugarte.
Even still, it appeared obvious after last season that a new No 6 was needed on Merseyside to rival the Brazil international. With Fabinho and captain Jordan Henderson both heading to the Middle East, Liverpool now need at least two more midfielders having already signed Dominik Szoboszlai and Alexis Mac Allister.
Southampton’s Romeo Lavia, Joao Palhinha of Fulham – formerly of Sporting before last summer – and Fiorentina’s Sofyan Amrabat are some of the defensive-minded options on their shortlist. Aurelien Tchouameni is long admired by Real Madrid but the Frenchman is unlikely to depart the La Liga giants, who beat Liverpool to his signature a year ago.
Cheick Doucoure from Crystal Palace is another fresh option but the Malian could cost £70m. Liverpool are meanwhile thought to have entered into talks with Southampton for their £50m-rated 19-year-old talent Lavia, though the Saints’ asking price is too high for Klopp and co.
No matter who they end up bringing in, there may be some regret that Ugarte will not be one of their new recruits. Everything about the Uruguay international suggests he would’ve been a huge hit under Klopp.
Leave a Reply