Rumor Mongering: Super Agent Pushing for Liverpool to Sign Fulham Wunderkind

The Liverpudlian corner of the winter 2022 transfer rumor mill has been fairly muted so far, at least compared to the some of the frenzies of transfer windows past (January 2021: moar centerbacks!, January 2020: must save the title defense!).

This time, midfield has become one of major areas in the Liverpool squad in need of overhaul as average age and injury counts grow weightier in the Reds engine room as the years go on. Consequently, linkages to exciting young midfield talents like Fulham’s Fabio Carvalho have begun to crop up with regularity

The Portuguese-born youngster, has scored four goals in 12 games so far this season in the Championship, as tenuous links with the likes of Real Madrid and Barcelona have emerged. This has predictably led to super agent Jorge Mendes—who can usually be found in the vicinity of any Portuguese talent worth taking seriously—reportedly taking a keen interest in the player, per the Daily Mail.

The 19-year-old, who has represented England at the U-18 level, is in the final year of his contract at Craven Cottage, and the London club have grown increasingly resigned to losing their academy product.

“I know his agent will have been talking to some other big clubs,” Fulham manager Marco Silva admitted recently on Carvalho’s contract situation. “But we are expecting something from Fabio and his agent —they know what they said to us.”

The Mail seems to believe that one of those “somethings” is that Mendes prefers Anfield as the final destination, a club the agent was said to have enjoyed working with on the efficiently-executed Diogo Jota transfer from Wolves in the summer 2020 window. This positive working relationship could help the incoming Julian Ward and his transfer team steal a march on Tottenham, a rumored suitor for the player.

With covid having thrown a wrench in the plans of clubs hoping to challenge for the league, the urgency to address some of the deficiencies in Liverpool’s squad have not been nearly as urgent. Therefore this might be a rumor we should be keeping an eye on for the summer, if anything.