Paul Joyce has revealed the hitherto unnamed club who had made an offer to Liverpool to sign Fabio Carvalho.
On Monday, both Fabrizio Romano (via Twitter) and David Lynch (Football Insider) had reported of a bid being presented to the Reds to acquire the 20-year-old permanently, noting that it came from a team in the Champions League but not specifying who it had been.
Another reporter has now removed the veil as to the origin of that offer, with Joyce stating for The Times that it came from RB Leipzig, only for it to be ‘dismissed as derisory’, despite claims elsewhere of a ‘big-money’ bid being tabled.
This report added that Liverpool will ‘resist permanent offers’ for Carvalho and are expected to take a ‘hardline stance’ but could be receptive to loan proposals, with Jurgen Klopp set to take the player’s preferences on board in deciding his immediate future.
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Joyce’s article backs up one by Caoimhe O’Neill for The Athletic which indicated that the Reds aren’t interested in selling the 20-year-old but could sanction a loan exit, so it appears as if any notion of a permanent transfer is off the table for now.
Whether RB Leipzig would be open to taking the ex-Fulham youngster on a temporary basis rather than signing him outright is debatable, but their previous dealings with the Merseysiders could work in their favour.
Liverpool have signed both Naby Keita and Ibrahima Konate from the Bundesliga club, while also raiding sister outfit Red Bull Salzburg for Takumi Minamino.
Furthermore, the German side’s current goalkeeper Peter Gulacsi was in the books at Anfield previously, so there’s been plenty of crossover between the two clubs in recent years.
It’s not unthinkable that the Reds could be willing to let Carvalho join Leipzig on loan if he’s possibly used as a bargaining chip to bring a player in the opposite direction, with Josko Gvardiol, Dani Olmo and Dominik Szoboszlai all mentioned as possible Merseyside targets in recent weeks.
However, there’d be little point in loaning him there unless he’d be assured of regular game-time, so Liverpool would need to consider any such proposition very carefully.