Having not made the trip to Germany with the rest of Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool squad after being the subject of a £40m bid from Saudi outfit Al-Ittihad it appears only a matter of time before Fabinho’s Anfield exit is confirmed.
The Brazilian had become recognised as one of the best holding midfielders in the world following his move to Merseyside from Monaco in 2018 but his struggle for consistency last term was a concern for many.
He was still believed to be firmly in Klopp’s plans for the upcoming campaign but ex-Red Nicol now thinks our German tactician is willing to accept the offer from the Middle East after realising the 29-year-old’s ‘legs have gone’.
“It’s funny, at the end of the season when we were talking about Liverpool’s midfield,” Nicol told ESPN (via HITC).
“I said it’s interesting to figure out whether Liverpool, the coaching staff and Klopp, when they all get together and talk about the players, whether Fabinho had a bad spell or whether his legs might have gone.
“The fact that they are willing to listen to offers for him, and this stage, with pre-season already started, tells you that they think his legs have gone. That is what this tells me. If they can get £40 million for a guy who, they aren’t obviously desperate to keep him if they are going to let him go, then you take the money.”
It would be a huge surprise to see our No. 3 leave the club but when you consider that we’ve utilised the services of the Brazil international during the prime of his career and now have the chance to receive £40m for him it is a deal that may prove hard to turn down.
When he was brought to the Premier League from Ligue 1 in 2018 he only cost the club £43.7m (Sky Sports) so Liverpool would be able to class this as excellent business.
That money would also now be put towards the signing of yet another new midfielder – following the signings of Alexis Mac Allister and Dominik Szoboszlai already this summer – with Melissa Reddy naming four players that could replace Fabinho.
It appears to be a matter of when and not if we’ll hear confirmation of his departure but one thing is for sure – he leaves as a Liverpool legend.
The impact he had on the side when he arrived at the club was immense and it’s therefore no surprise that he’s picked up every major trophy on offer during his time at L4.
#Ep80 of The Empire of the Kop Podcast: Fabinho & Jordan Henderson… going, going, gone?🎙️