According to James Pearce, Liverpool have a number of midfielders ‘under consideration’ to potentially replace Fabinho at Anfield.
The 29-year-old could be in line for a move to Saudi Arabia, with Al-Ittihad making a £40m offer to the Reds and the player not travelling with Jurgen Klopp’s squad to their pre-season training camp in Germany (The Athletic).
The focus has immediately turned to possible successors for the Brazil international if he does depart, with Fiorentina midfielder Sofyan Amrabat among those on the radar.
Sharing a corresponding article from The Athletic via Twitter, Pearce stated: “In terms of replacing Fabinho, Moises Caicedo is not viewed as a serious option with the Brighton midfielder expected to join Chelsea.
“Romeo Lavia, Sofyan Amrabat, Ryan Gravenberch and Kalvin Phillips are among those under consideration.”
Amrabat was mentioned as a viable signing for Liverpool back in December when he was excelling in Morocco’s shock run to the World Cup semi-finals.
Former England boss Fabio Capello described the 26-year-old as ‘the Gennaro Gattuso’ of the Atlas Lions (Il Messaggero, via Voetbal Primeur), quite a compliment to get when thinking back to the tigerish AC Milan colossus who was one of the best box-to-box midfielders of his generation.
The Moroccan was also a stalwart of Fiorentina’s run to the Europa Conference League final this year, and while a number 6 may often be perceived as a no-nonsense destroyer whose main job is to break up opposition attacks, he’s certainly no slouch in possession.
As per FBref, Amrabat ranks among the top 5% of positional peers in Europe over the past 12 months when it comes to pass completion, finding a teammate with 88.8% of his passes. He’s also adept at getting the ball forward, with 7.93 progressive passes per game placing him in the 92nd percentile for that metric.
He mightn’t have the Premier League experience that Lavia and Phillips can boast, but he’s played in plenty of high-stakes matches over the past year for club and country, so he shouldn’t be overawed by the challenge of succeeding in the English top flight if Liverpool sign him.
Losing Fabinho will be a blow to Klopp, as despite his downturn in 2022/23 he’s largely been a colossal presence for the Reds, but to replace him with the Fiorentina and Morocco ace would seem to be splendid business if it materialises over the summer.
You can see Pearce’s tweet below, via @JamesPearceLFC on Twitter:
In terms of replacing Fabinho, Moises Caicedo is not viewed as a serious option with the Brighton midfielder expected to join Chelsea.
Romeo Lavia, Sofyan Amrabat, Ryan Gravenberch and Kalvin Phillips are among those under consideration. #LFC https://t.co/6mW8K9awom— James Pearce (@JamesPearceLFC) July 15, 2023
#Ep80 of The Empire of the Kop Podcast: Fabinho & Jordan Henderson… going, going, gone?🎙️