Liverpool are interested in signing Southampton prodigy Romeo Lavia this summer, hoping to capitalise on the south coast club's Premier League relegation.
What's the latest on Romeo Lavia to Liverpool?
According to Football Insider, while Jurgen Klopp's Reds are considering lodging a formal offer for the Belgian teenager, they do not wish to be dragged into a bidding war with rival suitors Chelsea this summer.
The 19-year-old is reportedly available for around £45m-£50m, though if multiple outfits prove desperate to secure his signature, such a valuation could balloon, which would effectively end the Reds' interest.
Sporting director Jorg Schmadtke will be working diligently to add to the recent £35m acquisition of Alexis Mac Allister after the departures of James Milner, Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, and Lavia might just be the perfect rising star to be nurtured to prominence in their wake.
How would Lavia perform at Liverpool?
It's a strange old atmosphere at Anfield right now, with Liverpool nursing the wounds inflicted throughout the 22/23 campaign, failing to qualify for the Champions League, but holding an embedded sense of optimism that the dismal midfield and defensive displays will be rectified this summer.
The energetic Mac Allister is undoubtedly a stunning signing to pave the new foundation, but the club are expected to target two further additions in midfield and Lavia could be the shiny new anchor to hold the centre together with an iron-clad grip for years to come, already hailed as "incredible" by Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola.
Despite a terrible collective season with Saints, Lavia's pedigree shone through in coruscating light, having made 35 appearances across all competitions, scored one goal and assist apiece and earned a respectable Sofascore league rating of 6.8 after completing 86% of his passes and making 2.1 tackles per game.
It is unlikely that the one-cap star's positional peer on Merseyside, Fabinho, will be displaced for the forthcoming campaign despite sitting at the epicentre of Liverpool's seasonal strife, having rekindled some of his former vigour towards the business end of the campaign.
The “exquisite” Lavia – as he has been called by Jacob Tanswell – would be nurtured and integrated with care as he works towards a prominent role under Klopp's tutelage, and his ascent could coincide with Stefan Bajcetic's, who could form a devastating central partnership alongside the holding midfielder.
Liverpool's once imperious centre lost its sparkle this year after years of illustrious success, tired legs and sapped vitality playing their role in the decimation of an outfit once striking fear with a searing iron into opposition across Europe, but the prodigious Bajcetic entered the fold after impressing for the academy ranks and earned praise as an "incredible prospect" by journalist Tom Barnes for his energy and exuberance.
A robust enforcer, the 18-year-old Spaniard made 19 appearances for the Reds' senior side – scoring one goal – before injury cruelly ended his breakout year prematurely, but he is the future and with a pivot such as Lavia burgeoning alongside him over the next several terms, a fearsome duo could well be born.