Liverpool ‘keep sight’ of Amrabat as Klopp adds two more to midfield shortlist after Brighton beating
Fiorentina chief executive Joe Barone has confirmed “many teams” have “come knocking” for Sofyan Amrabat, with Liverpool rumoured to be interested.
Amrabat was one of the best midfielders at the 2022 World Cup as he helped Morocco reach the semi-finals.
Tottenham were linked with the Fiorentina player last winter and last summer with Antonio Conte willing to invest heavily in the Serie A market.
Conte brought Rodrigo Bentancur and Dejan Kulusevski from Juventus with Amrabat emerging as a surprise target.
While he was a surprise target at the time, it is no longer a surprise whatsoever to see him linked with a move to the Premier League.
Fiorentina paid close to £20million to sign Amrabat from Hellas Verona, so the Florence outfit will probably ask for a high fee to sell their talisman.
The club’s CEO Joe Barone has recently discussed the futures of Amrabat and Nico Gonzalez – who is attracting interest from Leicester City.
He reportedly told Calciomercato: “The only thing I’m saying is that both are Fiorentina players, they play for Fiorentina and I’m happy that so many teams come knocking for them, but I can confirm that right now it’s not easy to take away a player from Fiorentina.”
The Daily Mirror report that Liverpool remain interested in the Moroccan international.
Via Fichajes, they claim the Reds ‘do not lose sight’ of Amrabat despite recent reports suggesting the player has chosen to join Atletico Madrid.
The club have ‘contacted’ Amrabat’s representatives with Jurgen Klopp desperately seeking midfield reinforcements.
Klopp’s side were comprehensively beaten 3-0 by Brighton on Saturday afternoon with the German’s midfield once again putting in an abject performance.
Liverpool’s midfield has been a huge strength in recent years but they appear to have lost their legs this season.
Fans were calling for Klopp to bring in a new midfielder last summer and after initially saying he would not bring one in, he signed Arthur Melo from Juventus on a season-long loan.
Arthur picked up a long-term injury early on in his Liverpool career.
With Atletico keen on Amrabat, it is important for Klopp to eye up some alternative signings.
According to journalist Rudy Galetti, the Reds are also keen on Napoli’s Piotr Zielinski and Real Sociedad’s Mikel Merino.
“There are other names on their list including Amrabat, Merino, and Zielinski,” Galetti told GiveMeSport.
“But especially these last two names are possible targets for the summer. In this case, the situation will be clearer in the next few days, so let’s wait.”
Liverpool got a close look at Zielinski this season when the Poland international laced up for Napoli in the Champions League.
He put in a tremendous performance against the Reds, scoring twice and assisting once in the 4-1 win in September.
Merino, on the other hand, has Premier League experience having spent a season on loan with Newcastle United.
In 25 matches across all competitions for the Magpies, Merino scored one and assisted one.
He has gone from strength to strength since then, shining for Sociedad in La Liga.
