Real Madrid and Liverpool are reportedly among the clubs in talks to sign Brazilian defender Diego Carlos from Sevilla in the summer transfer window.
According to a report from Spanish news outlet El Gol Digital, Sevilla defender Diego Carlos seems to be a man in demand heading into the transfer window, with reigning La Liga champions Real Madrid and Premier League champions Liverpool interested in signing him.
Carlos, 28, joined Sevilla from French outfit FC Nantes in the summer of 2019 and quickly went about establishing himself as one of the most solid defenders in Spain. The Brazilian played an integral role in the club’s UEFA Europa League triumph under Julen Lopetegui last season.
Along with Jules Kounde, who is also a target for a host of top clubs in Europe, Carlos has forged a solid partnership at the heart of the Sevilla defence, helping them to the second-best defensive record in La Liga this term, having let in just 21 goals, with only leaders Atletico Madrid conceding fewer (18).
Given his exploits over the past year or two with Sevilla, Carlos has now registered on the radars of several top clubs that include La Liga rivals Real Madrid. There is a strong possibility that Los Blancos will be in for a defensive overhaul this summer as captain Sergio Ramos nears the expiry of his contract while Eder Militao is out of favour under Zinedine Zidane.
Furthermore, there have been murmurs of Raphael Varane seeking an exit as he desires a new challenge in his career. So, as things stand, Real Madrid will at least need to bring in one central defender if not two. A host of names have been linked with a move to the Bernabeu, with Carlos also now among those.
However, Real Madrid will likely have to face competition from Liverpool in pursuit of the Brazilian centre-back. The Reds have suffered from the lack of quality depth in the defensive department this term as injuries to Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip hurt the defence of their Premier League crown big time.
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Emergency reinforcements were signed in the form of Ozan Kabak and Ben Davies, but the former is only on loan while the latter is yet to make a breakthrough into Jurgen Klopp’s side. While Nat Phillips has stepped up admirably, signing another seasoned centre-back could be the right way to go about things for Liverpool next season.
To that end, they have incidentally been linked to Real Madrid’s Varane, while, as per the aforementioned report, Carlos is also a target. In fact, the report goes as far as saying that both Madrid and Liverpool are in talks to sign the Brazilian, along with some other clubs such as PSG, Manchester City and Bayern Munich.
Sevilla, meanwhile, seem to be preparing for the Brazilian’s exit, having identified Tottenham’s Davinson Sanchez as a replacement. It now remains to be seen if either of Liverpool or Real Madrid are able to snare away the 28-year-old Carlos in the summer or whether they are forced to pursue alternate targets.
