Liverpool have received positive scout reports about 25-year-old Portuguese midfielder Ruben Neves amid their hunt for a midfield reinforcement.
According to 90 min, Liverpool are closely monitoring the situation of Wolverhampton Wanderers midfielder Ruben Neves as they look to make a late addition to their midfield department before the summer transfer window closes next week.
Despite their huge win over Bournemouth, Liverpool have gotten off to a sluggish start in the new season, failing to win any of their first three Premier League games, making this their slowest start to a season in ten years. And injuries have played a big role in that.
The Reds have as many as four first-team midfielders in Thiago Alcantara, Curtis Jones, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, and Naby Keita on the sidelines with respective injury issues just three games into the new season, leaving veteran James Milner to pick up the slack in the middle of the park.
Liverpool were expected to sign a new all-action midfield enforcer heading into the summer. But after Real Madrid leapfrogged them to the capture of Aurelien Tchouameni, the Reds delayed their plans until next summer. Injuries have since decimated Klopp’s squad, forcing the German to abandon his steadfast belief that they had sufficient options in the middle of the park.
Klopp has now himself admitted the fact that Liverpool must dip into the transfer market for a new midfielder ahead of Thursday’s transfer deadline but added that the club will not make panic buys with only days left before the transfer window slams shut.
As per 90 min, Liverpool have been keeping tabs and compiling scout reports on a few players in the transfer market that meet their strict criteria, with Klopp wanting to add a new face to his squad before the September 1 deadline. One of the few options that the Liverpool scouting team has recommended is Wolverhampton Wanderers midfielder Neves, who has been linked with a move to Merseyside in the past.
The 25-year-old has come leaps and bounds since joining from FC Porto back in July 2017 while they were in the EFL Championship and is now an established Premier League star. He has made 216 appearances for the West Midlands outfit thus far, chipping in with 24 goals and 12 assists.
The Portuguese international was expected to embark on a fresh challenge away from the Molineux this summer. But Wolves have been able to fend off interest for Neves from fellow Premier League clubs such as Manchester United and Arsenal by slapping a hefty price tag on his proverbial head.
However, with two years left on his deal, now would be the right time to cash in a sizable fee if his long-term future is not at Molineux. Liverpool’s assistant manager Pep Lijnders previously had Neves in the Porto academy and has since stated that he “always interests” the Merseysiders in the market. But it remains to be seen whether they are willing to splash the cash for the 25-year-old.
