Brazil superstar ‘verbally agrees’ January transfer to Liverpool as Klopp aims to sign Fabinho successor

Liverpool are edging closer to a deal to sign one of Brazil’s most coveted young midfielders, according to reports.

Jurgen Klopp’s side are currently in the middle of a huge transitional period in midfield as the club adapts to life without big names such as Jordan Henderson, James Milner, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Fabinho.

The Reds began their rebuild with the signings of Alex Mac Allister, Dominik Szobszlai, Ryan Gravenberch and Waturo Endo, but one position which appears to be missing from Klopp’s jigsaw is a deep lying defensive midfield to fill the void of Fabinho.

This was signalled by failed summer moves for both Moises Caicedo and Romeo Lavia, with Chelsea hijacking deals for both players.

Another name that was close to signing was Andre Trindade of Fluminense. The 22-year-old is a highly rated defensive midfielder whose form has captured the attention of Europe’s elite clubs in recent seasons.

Andre’s ability caught the attention of five-time World Cup winners Brazil, who gave him his full competitive debut, which is likely to be the first of many caps in years to come.

Klopp in particular is a big admirer of the midfielder, according to Brazilian football expert Tim Vickery. 

Vickery told ESPN: “[Andre] nearly joined Liverpool in the last transfer window and may well make the move in the next,”

Earlier reports from LiverpoolWorld revealed that the deal in the summer was delayed due to Fluminense’s cup run in the Copa Libertadores.

The Brazilian outfit are scheduled to face Boca Juniors in the final of the tournament this Saturday and froze any attempts to sell Andre in the summer to focus on their progress in the competition.

The Rio de Janeiro based club have never previously lifted the tournament in its 63-year history and are determined to write their names into the record books.

However, a deal to sell Andre to Liverpool in January appears to be on the cards, according to reports from sports journalist Francois Plateau who tweeted: “Confirmed: André Trindade has verbally agreed personal terms with Liverpool.”

SportsMole claims that Liverpool offered £25m for the player during the summer transfer window, but it is not yet clear how highly he is valued at Fluminense.