Liverpool could sign dream Douglas Luiz alternative in £60m “machine”

With the January transfer window fast approaching, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp will be delighted with his side’s progress this season, scarcely recognisable following last year’s stark decline.

Withered and wearied from campaign after campaign of relentless running and battling against the likes of Manchester City and Real Madrid for the shiniest honours on offer, the midfield fell apart.

It’s perhaps only natural; Fabinho was a shadow of his former self but, aged 30, has played over 500 games for club and country.

Jordan Henderson and James Milner were both well into their thirties and understandably sapped after many successful years under Klopp’s wing, while Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain were plagued by injuries and, candidly, floated like flotsam in the ambitious Anfield squad.

Currently second in the Premier League after 14 matches – two points off first-placed Arsenal – Liverpool have paved the foundation for further success after the new year, but the January transfer window must see further fresh faces move to Merseyside.

Liverpool transfer news – Joao Palhinha

One player that Liverpool have had on their radar in 2023 is Fulham’s tough-tackling midfielder Joao Palhinha, with the 28-year-old dazzling in London after signing from Sporting Lisbon for £20m in July 2022.

According to a report from Anfield Watch back in October, the Reds had preserved their summer intrigue in the Portugal international, who had been at the centre of a failed transfer saga involving Bayern Munich.

The Bundesliga champions were on the cusp of signing the 28-year-old for £60m before the transfer deadline in August and had even wrapped up a medical and taken announcement pictures, but Fulham pulled out at the last minute having failed to sign a worthy replacement.

A recent report from the Telegraph has revealed that Bayern will face fresh competition from two unnamed Premier League outfits this January, and while Liverpool aren’t explicitly named, there’s every chance that Klopp and co are mulling over a move.

Joao Palhinha’s Fulham career in numbers

Fulham finished tenth on their return to the Premier League last season to avoid relegation for the first time since 2012/13, and Palhinha was crucial at the heart of Marco Silva’s outfit.

As per Sofascore, he started 35 times in the English top-flight last year, scoring three goals, completing 83% of his passes, winning 4.2 tackles, 1.8 clearances and 1.2 interceptions per game, and winning 59% of his contested duels.

No player has made more tackles this season than the £80k-per-week monster’s 57 (Pedro Porro is second, with 42 tackles); last season, it wasn’t even close, with Palhinha disarming his opponents with frightening ferocity.

A juggernaut of a holding midfielder, the 23-cap titan would be a brilliant addition for Klopp’s team and would open up a dimension that is undeniably missing from the fold.

And while he’s typically considered a defence-centred player, winning tackles with incredible precision and starting attacking transitions, the ball-winning proclivities could be aptly utilised by Klopp to start attacking transitions swiftly and incisively, adding yet another corridor to Liverpool’s surging movements toward the danger area.

He could also be the dream alternative to Aston Villa centrepiece Douglas Luiz, who has been in extraordinary form this season and has consequently got the sharks circling for his signature.

Joao Palhinha vs Douglas Luiz

Luiz has been in fine fettle this term and has posted six goals and four assists from 24 matches across all competitions this season, and as a result, Arsenal, Manchester City and Liverpool are all understood to have registered an interest in signing him, though Unai Emery’s side have slapped a £60m price tag on their star to ward off suitors.

Admittedly, Luiz is probably more dynamic than his Portuguese counterpart, who has been heralded as a “tackling machine” by Cottagers teammate Harrison Reed to emphasise his prowess as a formidable destroyer in the engine room.

But Liverpool boast a wealth of midfielders with noteworthy interchangeability; Alexis Mac Allister, for example, has assumed the deep-lying role in Klopp’s team since signing from Brighton & Hove Albion for £35m in the summer, renowned for his technical skills and progression.

Ryan Gravenberch, too, is a multi-functional player and Dominik Szoboszlai is a veritable workhorse, and while Luiz has been lauded as “the complete player” by The Athletic’s Jacob Tanswell, Palhinha could be the final piece of the puzzle.

As per FBref, the Fulham phenom ranks among the top 1% of midfielders across Europe’s top five leagues over the past year for tackles, the top 7% for interceptions, the top 16% for blocks, the top 12% for clearances and the top 17% for aerial wins per 90.

A far greater offensive threat, the Villan gem ranks among the top 10% of midfielders for goals, the top 17% for assists and the top 15% for shot-creating actions per 90, emphasising the kind of dynamism that Liverpool have been enticed by.

He’s not just a credit to the frontline, however, with the ten-cap Brazil international averaging 2.3 tackles and 6.3 recoveries per game, also winning 58% of his duels.

Impressive metrics, though not quite as meaty as Palhinha’s, who would offer Liverpool the transition-crumbling presence they need in the centre of the park.

Interestingly, prominent site Football Transfers actually links Luiz as Palhinha’s most comparable player, so perhaps, given the respective athletes’ robustness, there is ample reason for Liverpool to diverge from the pursuit of the Aston Villa machine.

Given that rising Fulham’s star man away would be far easier than swiping Luiz from Villa as they target Champions League qualification this year and seek to wade deep into the Europa Conference League, with eyes on the prize, then it certainly makes sense.

Klopp will have some thinking to do, but with Palhinha demonstrating his rock-solid brilliance as the defensive force in midfield, it would be a worthy investment.