Liverpool have started planning for life without Virgil van Dijk. While the Dutch international is expected to continue at the club for at least another season, the Reds want to bring in an ideal replacement who can take over from their skipper in the long run.
According to Pete O’Rourke via Football Insider, the Merseyside club have their eyes set on Sporting CP’s Goncalo Inacio, who has established himself as one of the best young defenders in Europe with his impressive performances for club and country.
He has come up the ranks at Sporting and has been a part of their first team for years now. He already has around 250 first-team appearances. The 24-year-old is also a regular feature in the Portuguese national team and is expected to be a part of their squad for the upcoming World Cup.
In the ongoing campaign, he has featured in 26 league matches. Inacio has contributed to four goals, completed 89.7% of his passes, and averages 4.89 duels and 1.8 tackles per 90 minutes.
While his contract at the Portuguese clubs runs until 2030, he has been constantly linked with a move away. Inacio might finally look to make a move to a bigger club post the World Cup, and there is serious interest in him from the Premier League.
Giants Liverpool have their eyes set on the 24-year-old left-footed centre-back. They consider him a perfect long-term replacement for Van Dijk. While he might not have that strong a stature, Inacio is great on the back and has great defensive awareness.
While speaking about Inacio’s future, O’Rourke said, “(Inacio) is a player that a number of Premier League clubs have been linked with over the years.
“Manchester United have been linked with him…Chelsea too. Obviously, Liverpool are also admirers of Inacio, who is a left-sided centre-back. There aren’t many top ones available, but he is one of them, for sure.
“They’re going to have to replace Virgil van Dijk sooner rather than later, you would imagine, and Inacio could be an ideal replacement for him, as he can play on the left side of that central defence.
“He’s got good pedigree at international level and has played Champions League football as well.”
While a number of top clubs have been linked with him, the Reds could look to move ahead of the competition. They certainly admire the 24-year-old, and with Van Dijk on the decline, investing in the youngster, who has a lot of experience at the highest level, would make a lot of sense. However, Sporting will demand a fortune to let go of one of their most valuable assets.
