Liverpool are reportedly prepared to make their move for Sao Paulo youngster Gustavo Maia if Barcelona don’t exercise an option to purchase him this summer.
The 19-year-old has seemingly made quite the impression in his homeland at youth level, as given the calibre of the clubs in question in this report, it suggests that he may well have a big future ahead of him.
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AS reported in March that Barcelona bought the right to sign the talented youngster, and will have to pay an additional €3.5m before June 30 to sign him outright.
In turn, while it remains to be seen if he has done enough to convince them, it’s now suggested that he could have a more than appealing back-up option if he fails to secure a switch to the reigning La Liga champions.
As reported by Tuttomercatoweb, (and Sport Witness via Mundo Deportivo), it’s suggested that if Barcelona decide against exercising their option which they say runs until July 15 and is worth €4m, Liverpool are seemingly primed to make their move to sign him instead as Jurgen Klopp could add depth and a long-term solution in attack.
Given the ongoing presence of his preferred attacking trident in Roberto Firmino, Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane, it arguably doesn’t make much sense for Klopp and Liverpool to splash out a big fee on a player to bolster his options in the final third which perhaps risks disrupting the balance in the squad.
In turn, swooping for a young talent like Maia, who is seemingly doing something right to gain interest from the likes of Barcelona and Liverpool, could be the smart move, as he would be more willing to bide his time behind that trio while pushing them in the coming years in search of a breakthrough at Anfield.
Time will tell firstly if Barcelona exercise their option and take it out of Liverpool’s hands, but if not, the Premier League leaders could make their move to take him to England instead.