Liverpool are keeping an eye on young Benfica star Enzo Fernandez with it being reported that the 21-year-old ‘is also on the rise behind the scenes’ at the club.
There will be a significant stumbling block in the form of a £105.1m release clause attached to the midfielder whose contract is set to run until the summer of 2027.
“Highlight of Benfica this season, Enzo Fernández is also on the rise behind the scenes at Liverpool,” Bruno Andrade wrote for UOL Sport.
“The 21-year-old Argentinian arrived at the Portuguese club in June, bought from River Plate for €10 million + €8 million for goals, and had the entire deal brokered by Mendes, along with Argentine agent Eugenio López.
“He currently has a release clause of 120 million euros.”
The Reds will make a new midfielder a priority for the summer window in 2023 to rebalance the department in light of a number of ageing options and potentially expiring contracts.
Having acquired a couple of stellar talents from the Portuguese top-flight – and given the club’s own obvious connections to Portugal via the coaching staff – it would far from surprise us to learn of the club keeping tabs on potential further additions to the squad from the league.
That being said, a fee in excess of £105m may rightly be considered a little steep as far as the recruitment team is concerned, particularly if we’re looking to issue a more than plump bid Borussia Dortmund’s way for Jude Bellingham next year.
Of course, we’ve seen big fees negotiated down before by our world-class recruiters, so it’s not entirely inconceivable to imagine a reality where we pull off a move for Fernandez.