Liverpool are reportedly keen on signing 19-year-old Portuguese defender Antonio Silva from Benfica.
According to a report from A Bola via Liverpool Echo, Liverpool will begin talks with Benfica regarding a move for Antonio Silva after the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
The 19-year-old defender has made one appearance for Portugal in the World Cup group stages against South Korea. And he was impressive with his performances. He has been linked with Real Madrid and Barcelona as well.
The youngster has impressed at the club level as well, and it appears that Liverpool are prepared to snap him up as a long-term investment. The Reds could certainly use a quality young centre-back like him, and it will be interesting to see if they can agree on a deal with Benfica.
The two clubs recently negotiated the big money transfer of Darwin Nunez. So Liverpool will be hoping to use the connections between the two sides to negotiate another transfer. Although Silva is 19, he is good enough to play for a top club, and he could be a useful squad player for Jurgen Klopp initially.
But Joel Matip is in his twilight years right now, while Joe Gomez has not been at his best since his return from injury. Liverpool could definitely use more competition for places in the centre-back department, and Silva could compete with them for a first-team spot.
Liverpool are reportedly looking to sign the player during the January transfer window. And it will be interesting to see whether Benfica are ready to sanction his departure midway through the season. It would weaken their squad, and they might not be able to bring in a quality replacement either.
The report further adds that Silva is likely to cost a fee of around £45 million. Although the asking price is quite steep, the 19-year-old has the potential to justify the outlay in the long run. But Liverpool have to strengthen the other areas of the squad, and it would be quite surprising if they decided to splash out £45 million on a backup defender in the upcoming windows.
The Reds will have to strengthen their midfield considerably before investing in the other areas of their squad. Also, Silva needs to play regularly at this stage of his career and he won’t get to do that at Liverpool ahead of Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate.
