Liverpool could sign their next Fabinho by beating Newcastle United to stunning £50m summer swoop
The Reds are being linked with a move for a high profile midfielder
Serendipity; the faculty or phenomenon of finding valuable or agreeable things not sought for. When some Liverpool employee or other was handed a plane ticket to Bergamo and a manilla folder containing nothing but a grainy polaroid of Teum Koopmeiners’ mug shot earlier this season, little could they have known what, or rather who, they would stumble across instead.
According to reports in Italy, while away on various Koopmeiner-focused scouting missions, the Reds have been thoroughly charmed by his Atalanta teammate Éderson. One particularly romantic account even goes as far as to suggest that Anfield chiefs are ‘bewitched’ by the Brazilian. Bless them.
In fairness, you can understand their infatuation. The midfielder has played 52 times across all competitions for his Italian employers this season, scoring seven goals and assisting one more from a predominantly defensive role in the centre of the park. His exploits have helped guide Atalanta to a top four finish in Serie A this season (and that could become a top three finish if they win their final game of the season against Fiorentina on Sunday), and, of course, a stunning Europa League victory in which they handed Xabi Alonso’s frightening Bayer Leverkusen side a first and only defeat of the campaign.
Over the course of an entire term, Éderson has registered the second-highest tackle completion rate of anybody in Atalanta’s squad, the fourth-highest number of interceptions, and the fifth-highest overall match rating, according to stats gurus Whoscored. For a club in Liverpool’s position, preparing for a new era and ideally looking to bring in a long term successor to the long-since departed Fabinho as part of an anticipated engine room partial rebuild, you can see why his compatriot appeals.
Indeed, Éderson is garnering attention from further afield than Merseyside too. Newcastle United were originally touted as suitors back in January, and have been credited with rekindling that interest in recent days. A cacophony of whispers suggest that Atalanta could demand in excess of £50 million for their 24-year-old stalwart - who has a contract in Italy which is set to run until 2027 - and that the Magpies could be willing to meet that valuation.
Whether Liverpool would be keen to match them in that regard remains to be seen, of course. The exact budgetary situation that Arne Slot is inheriting remains a little unclear at this stage, and there are certainly other areas of the pitch which the incoming Dutchman is likely to want to rejuvenate if at all possible.
But if the Reds do happen to have a spare £50 million or so kicking about in the coming weeks and months, then they could certainly do far, far worse than making a move for a player who is just entering his prime. Éderson may not be a household name or a proven world beater just yet, but if Liverpool have a proven track record of anything, it is taking players in and transforming them into elite talents. The Brazilian could, hypothetically, be the latest in that long, long production line.