Benfica manager Roger Schmidt has admitted he's "not afraid" of losing Enzo Fernandez after the midfielder was linked with a move to Anfield earlier in the week.
Fernandez, who only joined the Portuguese giants this summer from River Plate, has wasted no time in earning admirers in European football. He's already scored three goals in seven appearances for his new club, and subsequently helped them secure their place in the Group Stages of the UEFA Champions League.
His electric start to life in Europe has led to reports this week, by Sky Sports' Melissa Reddy, claiming that Liverpool have kept a "watchful eye" on the Argentine, despite only moving clubs this summer.
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However, Benfica boss, Schmidt, has insisted he is not worried about the prospect of losing the midfielder following the recent days of speculation.
“No, I’m not afraid," he said. "He feels good here, it’s the perfect place to develop,” said Schmidt (via Record ).
“He’s a great player, a great person, he’s focused, professional and knows what he does when he comes here. Everything came together at the right time, I think he will be here for a long time, half a year is not enough.”
Liverpool have been regular shoppers in the Prima Liga market in recent years with Luis Diaz and Darwin Nunez both swapping Porto and Benfica, respectively, for Anfield. Additionally, Julian Ward, the Reds' new sporting director, also knows Portugal very well from his earlier days on Merseyside where he served as a European scout with a focus on Spain and Portugal.
Despite initial plans to progress with the Reds' midfield overhaul next summer, last week Jurgen Klopp admitted that he was "wrong" and the club would be looking to sign a new midfielder before this week's deadline.
"There is really nothing to say about it," Klopp said. "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.
"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.
"We know all that. We will not change how we deal with the situation so there is nothing for me to say to you at this moment. We will see."
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