Fabinho’s perfect replacement for Liverpool sees game ‘two seconds ahead of everyone’

Benfica’s Florentino Luis may be the ideal successor to Fabinho’s Anfield throne

With Fabinho’s glittering five-year career at Liverpool seemingly coming to an end after Saudi Pro-League club Al Ittihad made a £40million bid for the midfielder, Jurgen’s side Klopp is forced to re-enter the market to find a suitable replacement. .

Although the 29-year-old Brazilian has struggled for form over the past 18 months, such a transfer fee would see the Reds recoup almost all the effort they put in to sign the midfielder from AS Monaco. the summer of 2018 by winning a person. recruited It will be difficult to match Fabinho’s level in his first three years at the club.

Even more so after Declan Rice sealed a £105m move to Arsenal late last week and Moises Caicedo appeared to be heading for a move to Chelsea. This means the Reds have very few top-flight options available.

Just days after Fabinho’s departure from Anfield, Fiorentina’s Sofyan Amrabat and Manchester City’s Kalvin Phillips have been named as the 29-year-old’s potential replacements.

But with Phillips having endured a difficult season since his £42m move to the Etihad last summer and turning 28 before the end of the year, it’s hard to see Liverpool, who have already broken links, back. links with the former Leeds man has distanced himself as he is interested in a deal for the England international.

With Amrabat having no experience at the top level of European football until his 27th birthday later this year, it’s hard to make his case as the ready-made No6 who could help Liverpool get back to the top. English and European table game.

One name who has been tentatively linked with a move to Merseyside in recent months, however, is Benfica’s Florentino Luis. The 23-year-old defensive midfielder is the latest talent to roll off the Estadio da Luz production line and has even been compared to legendary Chelsea and Real Madrid defensive midfielder Claude Makelele.

Luis is currently plying his trade in the Portuguese Primeira Liga, an area Liverpool have explored extensively in recent years under the influence of former sporting director Julian Ward. The 42-year-old previously worked as head of analysis and technical scouting at the Portuguese Football Federation in 2008 before being appointed as Liverpool’s European scouting director for the Spain and Portugal regions in 2012.

These positions allowed Ward to use his connections in that part of the world to help Liverpool quickly acquire Luis Diaz from FC Porto in January 2022 and Darwin Nunez from Benfica five months later.

After Enzo Fernandez left the Lisbon-based giants in a record Premier League move to Chelsea earlier this year, Luis appears to be the latest member of Roger Schmidt’s squad to be given a transfer across the continent.

Surprisingly, at the age of 23, Luis is yet to make his way into the Portugal national team, despite his rise to prominence at Benfica during the 2022/23 season. The midfielder was a ubiquitous figure in the Eagles’ journey to the Champions League quarter-finals, in which they edged fellow European heavyweights Paris Saint-Germain and Juventus to top Group H .

Joao Tralhao, former Benfica youth coach, said of his talent earlier this year: “Technically it’s not easy to find a midfielder with the defensive qualities he has. I was joking with him and saying he had won the match after two seconds before.” It’s amazing how many interceptions he makes, how he always manages to be in the right position.

“He’s always in the right space to get the ball back and he’s improved a lot in terms of dueling, using his body, protecting the ball in contact and so on.”

While acting like something of a human vacuum cleaner to the back four, more often than not in a 4-2-3-1 system, Luis wasn’t the only way he built a reputation as one of Portugal’s most important players exciting stars.

According to Fbref, Benfica’s number 61 averaged 7 passes every 90 minutes last season, surpassed only by Trent Alexander-Arnold (7.23), Jordan Henderson (8.22) and Thiago Alcantara (8.63). in the Liverpool team in the Premier League. By comparison, Fabinho averaged just 5.42.

But with Fabinho’s departure due to be signed in the near future after the midfielder stays in Merseyside rather than travel to Liverpool’s Black Forest training ground, newly appointed Jorg Schmadtke will be able to earn his corn as he looks for a long career .
term substitution.

But after the midfielder signed a new long-term deal at the Estadio da Luz until 2027 last October, it could be expected that Liverpool will be giving up a significant amount of cash if they convince one of the continent’s toughest sellers to make the move. business before the end of the window season.

But one thing that is not up for debate is that Liverpool are now facing an unexpected second rebuild of the summer if they are to rejoin Manchester City at the top of the Premier League and no corners can be cut if they do. to replace Fabinho, one of today’s great Anfield players.