Liverpool's deal for Fulham's Fabio Carvalho has fallen through at the eleventh hour.
The Reds were pursuing the 19-year-old late in the January window and agreed a deal with Fulham just before the deadline.
Fulham were desperate to keep hold of their talented winger but were resigned to losing him with his contract due to expire in June.
As Carvalho is under the age of 24, Premier League rules state that Liverpool would have been required to pay compensation to the Cottagers if they signed Carvalho at the end of his contract.
That pushed Liverpool chiefs to try and conclude a deal in January, but they ran out of time as the deadline passed without managing to conclude the transfer.
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Carvalho has been a key player at Craven Cottage this season, scoring seven goals and providing four assists in 18 appearances in the Championship.
Boss Marco Silva was adamant the Portuguese would remain with Fulham till the end of the season and the club drove a hard bargain.
Liverpool were not the only club interested in his services but the Reds were wary that leaving it till the summer would give other suitors the chance to muscle in on a deal.
It is thought a fee was not agreed between the clubs until inside the final two hours of the window with Liverpool then rushing through the relevant paperwork and a medical to try and get the transfer completed in time.
Fulham have already lost Harvey Elliott to Liverpool previously - a deal which eventually went to tribunal.
Carvalho can still play a part in helping his side reach the Premier League, with Fulham currently top of the Championship and five points clear with a game in hand.
Silva had said just days ago: "Fabio will be with us until the end of the season.
"From day one I have been trying to keep him. It is not a surprise that clubs are interested in Fabio. We are talking about a young player with big talent.
"The situation is not easy because he is in the last year of his contract, but that is the reality. It is out of our plans for him to leave the club in this window.
"It has been difficult for us to renew with him, but we are trying.
"It is always difficult with a player of this talent - even with a contract it is difficult to keep him, and without it is even worse. But Fabio will be with us until the end of this season."
Carvalho would have been Liverpool's second signing of the window after the Reds landed the signature of exciting winger Luis Diaz from Porto in a £50million deal.
Defender Nat Phillips was the only departure on deadline day as he joined Bournemouth on loan until the end of the season.
