Brentford have agreed a deal to sign the Liverpool attacking midfielder Fábio Carvalho in a deal worth £27.5m.
The Portuguese player, previously with Fulham, will head back to west London once the formalities, including a medical, are complete. Personal terms have been agreed. He was contracted to Liverpool until 2027, having joined them from Fulham in the summer of 2022 for an initial deal worth £5m.
Fulham have a sell-on clause of 20% for a player who was a leading light in their 2021-22 Championship promotion campaign before heading to Merseyside. After a bright start, including a couple of goals in his first month as a first-team player, he found opportunities harder to come by.
Last season featured loan spells at RB Leipzig and then Hull, where he reasserted the talent he had shown previously with nine goals for the Tigers in the Championship. If Jürgen Klopp was unable to find a role for him, it appears Arne Slot, despite some promising appearances in pre-season, including goals from the left wing against Arsenal and Manchester United, also considers him surplus to requirements.
Southampton had a recent bid turned down before Brentford made an offer that included a 17.5% sell-on clause for a player who returns to London, where he first moved as an 11-year-old. Carvalho has represented England at junior level before opting to play for Portugal.
Brentford moved for him after Igor Thiago, their previous summer forward signing, was ruled out until “late 2024” by a knee injury. Ivan Toney’s future, including links with Manchester United and Arsenal, remains uncertain as Thomas Frank seeks to strengthen his squad. Last season’s 16th place was rather too close for comfort.
Liverpool meanwhile are yet to make a senior signing as Slot succeeds Klopp. It is expected the funds from selling Carvalho will go towards a transfer kitty targeted towards a deal for the Euro 2024-winning midfielder Martín Zubimendi from Real Sociedad.
