Jose Mourinho thinks he’s about to sign 23-year-old player from right under Liverpool’s noses

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Roma manager Jose Mourinho believes he’s beaten Liverpool to the signing of Eintracht Frankfurt’s Evan Ndicka.

That’s according to a report in 90min today. They claim that Mourinho is now ‘confident’ that Roma will wrap up a deal for Ndicka in the near future.

That reportedly comes despite interest from both Liverpool and Manchester City. Both sides are said to have ‘watched’ the Frenchman, while he’s claimed to have been of ‘particular interest’ to Tottenham, too.

With Ndicka set to be available on a free transfer this summer, Barcelona have also reportedly expressed an interest. However, the Catalans are now said to have ‘backed away’ from a deal for the 23-year-old.

That has left the English sides and Roma to battle it out. And according to this report at least, Mourinho the wily old operator may be about to claim a win over his Premier League rivals.

Ndicka set to make his choice

As Liverpool search for a new addition to their defence this summer, Ndicka could be perfect. Young, experienced and – crucially – available for nothing, he’d tick virtually every box for the Reds.

Unfortunately, the Eintracht man would also do the same for just about every team in continental competition in the whole of Europe.

The market is set to go crazy with prices this summer. Thanks in large part to Chelsea and Man City, the price of everything has been enormously inflated.

As a result, a bargain like Ndicka is going to have his pick of where to play.

Unlike perhaps at Roma, the centre-back wouldn’t be assured of a starting spot at Liverpool. In fact, it’s highly unlikely that he would have one. As a left-footer, he could be slated to take up Virgil van Dijk’s spot on the left-side of the back two in the future. But with Virgil still expected to go strong for two or three years, that’s a long-term goal.

On the right side, there’s more chance of him usurping countryman Ibrahima Konate. But with Ibou showing exactly why he’s rated so highly in the second-half of the season, that seems unlikely, too.

So given the choice, you can expect that Ndicka would prefer regular football. Mourinho and Roma seem likely to offer that, where the Reds simply can’t. He hasn’t had too many wins over Liverpool of late, but the ‘Special One’ could claim a valuable victory here.