Jurgen Klopp is prepared to let Fabio Carvalho leave Liverpool on loan after the youngster faced a challenging first season at Anfield.
The former Fulham star made a fast start for the Reds after joining last summer, but by the end of the season he found himself starved of minutes. An early exit for the Portugal Under-21 international had been mooted, but Klopp doesn't appear ready to give up on Carvalho altogether.
RB Leipzig had been sniffing around, hopeful of a discounted fee on a player who still has time on his side. With a loan rather than a purchase, though, the Reds have a chance to see if Carvalho - like fellow Premier League youngsters Emile Smith Rowe and Ethan Ampadu - can come back stronger after a spell at Red Bull Arena.
According to The Athletic, Liverpool and Leipzig have opened talks over a season-long loan. The Reds previously knocked back a £12.7m bid, and have no plans to sell the 20-year-old, but Klopp previously spoke about a potential loan.
“I think there is a possibility that maybe Fabio will go on loan or whatever," the German said after the final game of the season, with Carvalho an unused sub in the draw with Southampton. "We will see. The thing is, this was not Fabio’s best year of his career, clearly, in a very young career, but it might have been his most important.”
Leipzig, who are managed by Marco Rose, finished third in the Bundesliga last season to guarantee themselves Champions League football. They have already made a number of signings this summer, including wrapping up a deal for Slovenian wonderkid Benjamin Sesko, but have work to do to make up for the loss of Christopher Nkunku to Chelsea.
Would a loan in Leipzig be good for Fabio Carvalho? Have your say in the comments section
Carvalho featured in Liverpool's first seven league games last season, scoring a last-gasp winner against Newcastle and also netting in the 9-0 victory over Bournemouth. However, after a tough few months, Klopp acknowledged how a period without first-team minutes - not through any fault of the player himself - had impacted the new arrival.
"Obviously, he's not in a happy place at the moment," Klopp said in February, as reported by The Echo. "You cannot see that on the pitch or when I see him. It's not really obvious, but I can imagine because he's a footballer he wants to play, and he didn't play often enough.
"That cannot help a lot but that's another thing in a long career that you have to go through. For me it looks in the moment that he takes it as good as is possible."
In the weeks after those comments, things didn't get much easier. Carvalho made the matchday squad for 12 of Liverpool's last 16 games, but only made it onto the pitch for eight minutes - two in the defeat at Bournemouth and six during a 3-0 victory at Leicester.
The former Fulham man appeared to make his feelings clear, hinting at moving to new surroundings with his activity on social media. While he was sitting on the sidelines on Merseyside, his former club enjoyed an impressive first season back in the top tier, and Carvalho was forced to watch from afar as ex-colleagues including Aleksandar Mitrovic secured a top-half finish.
Klopp clearly sees something in his recruit, though, and must have recognised Carvalho's quality when the signing was made. Just because there has been no place for him in the Reds' starting XI so far doesn't mean he'll never get the chance, and with a contract running until 2027 he still has time on his side.
A move to Leipzig would provide European football and more regular minutes in a top league. It's something Liverpool accept they can't offer right now, and they will hope he returns in a better place.
