Liverpool Join Man Utd In Chase For €28m-Rated Brazilian Midfielder

The January transfer window may be closed but that won’t stop the newspapers from speculating ahead of the summer so we’ll bring you all the news and gossip. Today, Liverpool are linked with Lazio midfielder Felipe Anderson…

Liverpool have joined Premier League rivals Manchester United in the race to sign Lazio’s highly-rated Brazilian midfielder Felipe Anderson, according to reports.

The 21-year-old joined Lazio from Santos in the summer of 2013 and has been impressing this season with some fine displays in Italy, with the attacking midfielder chipping in with seven goals and eight assists in his 23 appearances so far.

Anderson’s excellent form has attracted interest from all over Europe with reports suggesting that Manchester United are among the clubs who are keeping a close eye on his progress ahead of the summer.

However, it appears the Red Devils could now face stiff competition as the Mirror are claiming today that Liverpool have joined the chase for his signature with Brendan Rodgers believed to have sent scout Paul Goldrick to watch him in action during Lazio’s clash with Fiorentina on Monday night.

Anderson completed the full ninety minutes and grabbed one assist during another impressive display as Lazio stormed to a 4-0 victory to move up to third place in the Serie A table and stay on course to qualify for the Champions League next year.

Should Stefano Pioli’s men hold on to secure a place in Europe’s elite competition next term, then I’m sure they will be desperate to keep hold of their best players, but the newspaper suggests they may be tempted to cash-in if an offer in the region of €28m (£20m) comes in.

It remains to be seen whether the likes of Liverpool or United will be willing to pay that kind of money for the young Brazilian but as he’s contracted to the Stadio Olimpico until 2018, Lazio are under no pressure to sell on the cheap.

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He’s certainly an exciting talent and the kind of player fans from Liverpool and United would appreciate, but even if one of the clubs were able to get a deal agreed they may have trouble gaining a work permit as Anderson is yet to be capped for the senior Brazilian national team.

However, they would be encouraged by the fact that Arsenal were recently granted a work permit for Gabriel Paulista despite the defender not meeting the caps quota for Brazil either.