All the attention may well be on the upcoming World Cup, but there is another tournament that should be of interest to Liverpool.
The Copa São Paulo de Futebol Júnior is unlikely to be a competition followed by many around the globe, though a large number of players who have participated in this annual sporting event over the years are now household names within the modern game.
Hosted during the month of January each year for players under the age of 21, 120 teams in Brazil are provided the opportunity to showcase their emerging talents, not only to those living in the country but to the wider world.
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Founded in 1969, the tournament (also referred to as Copinha) has seen the likes of Cafu, Romario and Ronaldo pass through before establishing themselves as footballing greats. In more recent times, Neymar played in the 2008 edition of Copinha for Santos at the age of 15, becoming the youngest-ever individual to score in the competition, and featured again the following the year in 2009.
Looking a little closer to home, both Alisson and Fabinho also competed in Copinha as youngsters. Liverpool's No.1 was present during the 2011 edition where he was a reserve for Internacional, while Fabinho made a positive impression in the same year when featuring as a right-back for Fluminense. Two of Arsenal's strongest performers of the current campaign - Gabriel Jesus (2015) and Gabriel Martinelli (2019) - also turned out in this competition before continuing their progression at their clubs, though transfers to England both beckoned for both players further down the line.
The current holders of the Copa São Paulo de Futebol Júnior are Palmeiras, who clinched their first title in the competition's history after securing a comprehensive victory over Santos in the 2022 final. On the scoresheet during this showpiece fixture was Endrick, who scored seven goals in seven games in his first Copinha and was voted Player of the Tournament by supporters after leading his side to glory.
On the back of a string of assured displays, the 16-year-old has since been tipped to become the latest Brazilian to make the move to Europe and take the next step in his career. Liverpool are among the teams said to be tracking the teenager, who will have hopes of emulating his previous performances during the 2023 tournament
Endrick is expected to be the one individual all eyes will be on, despite being unable to leave for a foreign club until he turns 18, but plenty of other rising stars are likely to emerge in January. Targeting South America as a location to conduct transfer business is an approach that has served both Barcelona and Real Madrid well in recent years, with Federico Valverde and Ronald Araujo being scouted from their respective sides in Uruguay. Brazilian duo Rodrygo and Vinicius Jr are the two standout examples of this business model serving its purpose, with the pair now established first-team regulars in Madrid's team after breaking through at Santos and Flamengo respectively.
FSG had recently been tipped to acquire a stake in first division side Atletico Mineiro, suggesting attention may well be turning to this corner of the world when it comes to recruitment, though reports from Brazil have since claimed the Liverpool owners are 'no longer in the fight' to acquire a stake in the reigning top flight champions.
Regardless of whether or not this business opportunity fails to materialise, the Reds could reap the rewards of following in the footsteps of clubs to have taken a chance on players capable of developing into elite performers. Flamengo midfielder Joao Gomes is the latest name to have been mentioned as a potential purchase for Liverpool, who may well be inclined to act in the transfer market to avoid missing out on another player destined to head for Europe.
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