Liverpool forward Fabio Carvalho has been absolutely brilliant on the training pitch recently.
The 20-year-old has been the talk of the town of late, with rumours emerging that he could be set for a premature move away from Anfield.
But according to Jurgen Klopp, a decision is yet to be taken on such a matter. Besides, Jurgen says, young Fabio has been catching his eye.
“I would like to make all these decisions with the boys before we talk (publicly) about it. There is no decision in any direction yet,” Klopp said via the Liverpool Echo about the prospect of a loan move for Carvalho.
“What I can say is that this week in training he was exceptional again. He’s really outstanding. So, yes, we will talk to each other and then we will see what we will do – what he wants, what I think, but there’s no decision yet.”
Something has to give for Fabio
It could very well be true that Carvalho is wowing Klopp in training at the moment. The 20-year-old is an extremely talented footballer with fantastic ability. But truthfully, we think this is a little bit of fluff from Jurgen.
The boss has a good track record of chucking younger players into the starting XI if he thinks they’re good enough. Impress him on the training pitch and you’ll be given your opportunities.
In Carvalho’s case, those opportunities have been severely limited throughout the second half of the season.
As a result, we think it’s clear that Klopp either doesn’t think the youngster fits the system, doesn’t think he’s ready, or doesn’t think he’s good enough.
In all of those cases, sanctioning a loan move for Carvalho next season would make a whole lot of sense. The boy needs minutes and confidence. With a rebuild on the way at Liverpool in the summer, that’s likely to move even further from his reach next year.
A good loan move can change all that, though. At the very least it could put Carvalho in the shop window should Liverpool decide he’s a lost cause at Anfield. Selling the Portugal U21 star this summer should be out of the question, but something has to give. There’ll be plenty of takers no doubt. Liverpool should entertain them.