Liverpool have made a £20m offer for Aston Villa and Brazil midfielder Douglas Luiz, according to reports in Brazil.
On Tuesday evening, Brazilian journalist Matheus Leal claimed the Reds had made a move for the 24-year-old, tweeting: "Brazilian Douglas Luiz could leave Aston Villa for Liverpool in the final hours of the window. Liverpool have made an offer of £20 million for the midfielder, who welcomes the change of team. Aston Villa play hard and look to win a little more."
Liverpool's firm stance on bringing in midfielders has somewhat softened in recent weeks after Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Curtis Jones and Thiago Alcantara found themselves nursing injuries in the maiden weeks of the new campaign. Leaving Jurgen Klopp with no choice but to perform a public U-turn.
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"We are looking for it and if it is the right player we need him and if it is not the right player we don’t need him," Klopp said prior to last week's visit of Bournemouth.
"I know we have had this discussion since it all started and I am the one who said we don’t need a midfielder and you were all right and I was wrong. Now we go for a midfielder. That’s the situation. But the specific point doesn’t change - we will do something but it has to be the right one.
"Curtis comes back, Thiago is not too far off, Diogo is not too far off, Joel comes back and that all eases the situation slightly. It would be great if no one gets on the list on the other side with a really intense time coming up."
Having joined from Manchester City in 2019, the Brazilian had been a stalwart figure for former manager Dean Smith as Villa dramatically avoided relegation from the Premier League on the final day of the season 2019/20 campaign. Luiz then played a key role in Smith's side progressing once more as a second consecutive season in the top-flight for the first time since 2016 saw his side finish in an impressive 11th place.
However, with Smith paying the price of his job for the club's poor start to the 2021/22 campaign, the midfielder has since found life difficult under manager Steven Gerrard during the opening weeks of the Liverpool legend's first full season in the hot seat as he has only started one of their four Premier League games so far.
Luiz's skillset could offer Klopp the versatility he needs amid the current injury crisis at Anfield, with the Brazilian having played in defensive and central midfield roles in the days since his move from Manchester City.
On Tuesday afternoon, the Liverpool manager revealed that he was still eyeing up a midfielder prior to Thursday's deadline.
"Are we still after a midfielder? Ish. Somehow, yeah," he told reporters. "The closer we get to the last minute, the more unlikely it gets," he admitted at his latest pre-match press conference. "That's how it is. What can I say? Nothing. We are not out. I couldn't (tell you names (even) if I wanted. And I don't want."
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