Liverpool are now in the frame for Joao Palhinha as they look to find a replacement for Fabinho after West Ham had a £45million bid for the Fulham midfielder rejected, according to the Liverpool Echo.
With Declan Rice’s £105m sale to Arsenal finally in the books the Hammers are looking to replace him, but The Guardian reported on Monday (17 July) the big-money bid for their “key” target had been thrown out
Fulham reportedly want as much as £80m for the Portuguese, 28, and now the prospect of an approach from Anfield has arisen as Brazilian Fabinho looks set to leave for Saudi Arabia.
According to The Echo Jurgen Klopp’s side expect the £40m sale of the 29-year-old to Al-Ittihad to be “finalised shortly” and want a replacement in before they face Chelsea on 13 August.
While the Reds would reportedly prefer younger options, the need for an “immediate solution” has seen them widen their age profile making Palhinha a “possibility” after the Irons’ bid was rejected on Monday.
It is already looking tricky to land Palhinha, and with David Moyes surely requiring more than one significant signing at the position, even before he considers other areas, it would be a risk to spend the lion’s share of the Rice money on one man.
Sky Sports journalist Dharmesh Sheth suggested the Fulham man may have given West Ham some encouragement that he wants the move, speaking on Sky Sports News after the rejected bid, because the Cottagers aren’t open to offers.
But interest on the player’s side might be at risk of being derailed if Liverpool come into the race in a big way soon, so this won’t be what the Hammers boss wants to hear.
With everyone well aware that West Ham have received a huge windfall for Rice they are all going to want an inflated fee to sell their own midfielders.
That effect has even spread into pursuits that the Irons aren’t a part of, with Chelsea’s chase of Brighton’s Moises Caicedo apparently hingeing on the money being similar [Telegraph, 6 July].
So it is currently an uphill struggle for West Ham in their attempts to prize Palhinha from the west of London to the east, and interest from Merseyside would only make that hill steeper.
In other West Ham news, a Chelsea replacement is back on the agenda as Moyes faces all three of his current options leaving in the next few weeks
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