Liverpool are reportedly eyeing a move for a "magician" of a footballer, seeing him as someone who could replace a current Reds hero in a surprising swap deal.
Liverpool eyeing more signings
Jurgen Klopp did some of the most important transfer business of his whole tenure during the summer window, as he completely rebuilt his midfield. By bringing in the likes of Dominik Szoboszlai, Alexis Mac Allister and Ryan Gravenberch, Liverpool acquired the services of some young and exceptionally gifted midfield players, having looked so jaded in that area last season, when Fabinho and Jordan Henderson struggled greatly.
Mohamed Salah
89
Virgil van Dijk
89
Alisson
89
Andy Robertson
86
Trent Alexander-Arnold
86
Diogo Jota
85
Thiago
84
Luis Diaz
84
Cody Gakpo
83
Alexis Mac Allister
82
Darwin Núñez
82
Dominik Szoboszlai
82
Ibrahima Konate
81
Wataru Endo
80
Joel Matip
80
Joe Gomez
79
Ryan Gravenberch
79
Harvey Elliott
77
Curtis Jones
77
Kostas Tsimikas
77
Caoimhin Kelleher
73
Stefan Bajcetic
72
Adrian
72
Conor Bradley
69
Luke Chambers
62
Ben Doak
62
Kaide Gordon
62
Jarell Quansah
62
Vitezslav Jaros
61
Bobby Clark
57
Marcelo Pitaluga
57
While things have been transformed in the middle of the park, further signings need to arrive elsewhere, and the Reds have been linked with plenty of new faces. Liverpool are reportedly leading the race to sign Sporting CP star Goncalo Inacio, for example, seeing him as someone who can bolster their defensive options.
Meanwhile, Barcelona youngster Ansu Fati has been tipped to move to Anfield, as Klopp potentially looks to find a long-term replacement for Mohamed Salah. Another attacking ace has also been thrown into the mix, with a surprise swap deal potentially in the works.
Liverpool eyeing Raphinha-Diaz swap deal
According to a report from Spain, Liverpool are interested in signing Barcelona winger Raphinha, bringing him in as a direct swap for Luis Diaz, who has been hailed as "exceptional" by Jurgen Klopp in the past.
It is claimed that the Reds see the former Leeds United winger as a strong option to snap up, and are happy to see Diaz head in the opposite direction in the process. There is no question that Raphinha is an extremely talented footballer, with the Brazilian so often standing out as one of Leeds' best players during his time there.
Dan James, a teammate of his at Elland Road, had this to say before the move to Barca: "He’s a magician. He’s always been a great player – I played against him at United and he was always great – but he’s improved so much."
A classy wide player with a beautiful left foot, it is easy to see why the Reds admire Raphinha, even though his time at Barca has been fairly underwhelming, with the Liverpool target scoring 12 goals and getting 15 assists in 61 appearances for the La Liga giants.
To see Diaz leave is something that the club shouldn't even be entertaining, however, with the Colombian an elite wide player who has looked somewhere close to his best again this season, as he battles back from a serious knee injury last term. Still only 26, the Liverpool ace is the same age as Raphinha and is arguably a more potent provider of end product, with Diaz's stats of four goals in ten starts impressive given what's happened in his personal life in recent weeks.
The Colombia superstar is also a left-sided player, whereas Raphinha is happier cutting in from the right, so it wouldn't make a huge amount of sense to replace the latter with the former. Should he come in, though, Liverpool would be getting a very talented attacker – one who could develop further from playing under Klopp.