Liverpool have begun advanced talks to sign Benfica winger Eduardo Salvio according to reports, but they might have to pay a hefty fee for the Argentine.
Salvio has a release clause of A?43.6m and if Benfica play hardball with the transfer fee, we could see the reds breaking their transfer record for the 24-year old. However, it’s very unlikely that Liverpool will have to dish out such a high fee.
The Merseysiders have scouted Salvio for some time now and have been impressed by the progress shown by him. Although manager Brendan Rodgers has no shortage of wide players at his disposal, Salvio is a talent whose value will only increase in the future. The Ulsterman had revealed some time ago that Liverpool will challenge for the title next year. For that to happen, the club will have to compete with the likes of Chelsea and Manchester City whose second squads too has some quality. At the moment, Liverpool do have depth to some degree, but they are young players.
The likes of Jordon Ibe, Lazar Markovic, Alberto Moreno were signed for good money, but they aren’t the players who will win you a title. Salvio might be just 24-years of age, but he has represented Benfica in the Champions League for two seasons now as well as helping them challenge for the Portuguese league title.
Salvio was signed from Atletico Madrid for a fee of a 11m in 2012 and since then he has had an impressive couple of years. He can play in a variety of positions up front but is predominantly a right winger. Salvio’s best season came as soon as he signed for the club in 2012 as he scored 10 goals and provided nine assists in 29 league appearances. This season, he can beat those figures as he has made 23 appearances so far and has already managed eight goals and seven assists. Salvio’s good form in early 2013 would have surely continued if it wasn’t for a knee injury in August 2013 that ruled him out for nearly six months. As a result, he lost the good momentum that he had built in the prior season and ultimately missed the ticket to the Word Cup 2014 with Argentina.
Salvio could suit Liverpool’s style of play as his goal scoring prowess will mean that Rodgers can deploy him up front as he likes to tinker with his lineup from time to time.
