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Liverpool have been linked with Benfica defender Antonio Silva with the Reds one of the clubs «keeping close eye» on the Portuguese international.
The 19-year-old, who has already made three caps for Portugal, only made his first-team debut this season, with Silva making 39 appearances in his first season.
And his form for club and country hasn’t gone unnoticed elsewhere in Europe with reports earlier this week stating that Benfica are «preparing for a big battle for his signing at the end of the season».
Silva has a £77m release clause in his current contract and Liverpool could be tempted to bid as they look to find a consistent centre-back duo.
And former Sporting Lisbon and Sevilla defender Daniel Carrico insists Liverpool are one of the big clubs with a serious interest in the Portuguese centre-back.
Carrico said SIC news‘ show Open game: “There are few words to praise Antonio Silva more. He is a young man who does not look like a young man. He plays with the maturity of a senior and a centre-back with several years of experience. He has a very strong personality. He proves it on the pitch.
“He is a leader. Together with Otamendi, he formed a very strong duo. He shows that he is prepared for other flights. It is normal for a young central defender to gain more experience, but he has shown, even in the national team, that he is prepared.
“It is normal to have to make mistakes to learn and evolve, but Antonio Silva plays alongside Otamendi, who has been a great support for this stability. Antonio Silva missed the stages, having already made it to the national team in his first season. The big clubs keep an eye on Antonio Silva, of course. Liverpool are no exception.»
Liverpool’s midfield is the area of the squad that Klopp and his recruiting team are most keen to improve with Ryan Gravenberch deemed a serious target.
Gravenberch hasn’t played much for Bayern Munich this season and the midfielder has come out publicly and asked for more playing time ahead of next season.
And transfer pundit Fabrizio Romano has revealed the Liverpool target will have a «meeting shortly» with Bayern Munich in a bid to clarify his future with the «particularly» interested Reds.
Roman said Caught offside: “There is a lot of interest in Ryan Gravenberch – he doesn’t play for Bayern and he confirmed he is not satisfied at all, he wants more minutes and says next season he has to change.
“There will be a meeting between Bayern and Gravenberch soon, but from the club’s point of view they want to keep him and have no intention of negotiating his departure.
“There has been interest from the Premier League since January – Liverpool, Manchester United and Arsenal were all aware of his situation but could not proceed due to Bayern’s position.
Especially Liverpool remain interested and had direct talks with their agent a few days ago, so they are waiting to see if this could change.»
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