Merseyside giants Liverpool are thought to have placed themselves in the running to sign Sporting Lisbon’s sturdy defensive midfielder William Carvalho.
The 24-year-old Carvalho, who was born in Angola, has been in scintillating form for Sporting this season. He has played in at least 29 matches for the club in all competitions so far, playing a critical role from deep as a link between defence and attack for his side.
Carvalho’s well-rounded skills in midfield is thought to have earned him a suitor in Liverpool, with Anfield boss Jurgen Klopp eager to sign the player. True enough, according to Portuguese daily A Bola, Liverpool are prepared to splash out no less than £25m in order to sign the player this month.
The Portuguese side, for their part, have not released any information regarding Carvalho’s prospective sale to Liverpool, though it is unlikely they will easily let go of one of their key players.
In recent years, Carvalho has attracted the attention of other Premier League sides, including the likes of Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea, and West Bromwich Albion – though none have thoroughly pursued their interest in the midfielder.
Liverpool, for their part, have no need to sign Carvalho. The obvious reason is they already have an embarrassment of players who can play in the defensive midfield role at a similar, if not better, level than the Sporting midfielder.
The five-time Champions League winners already have the likes of Emre Can and Lucas Leiva in their ranks, and both are natural defensive midfielders. With Leiva set to leave, Klopp can put his faith on young Kevin Stewart, another Englishman with potential.
Apart from that, Liverpool also have Jordan Henderson and James Milner, both capable of keeping possession and defending the ball in the middle of the park.
Then there’s the enigmatic Philippe Coutinho, who has recently signed a new five-year-deal with the club despite reported interest from Barcelona and Real Madrid. Coutinho is an amazing playmaker with a well-rounded set of skills that make him more than able to keep the ball in midfield. The Brazilian is an accomplished box-to-box midfielder in many ways and can cover deep in midfield if necessary.
Liverpool possess great depth in midfield, it is almost unthinkable they would need a midfielder in the near future.
Carvalho has a contract with Sporting Portugal until the summer of 2020. Amid the interest surrounding him, however, it remains to be seen if he will be able to see out his contract with the club.