Liverpool secured the signings of Ben Davies and Ozan Kabak in the final hours of the January transfer date, strengthening their center-back opportunities.
Injured duo Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez could miss the rest of the season, while Joel Matip and Fabinho are also injured. Jordan Henderson and the inexperienced duo Rhys Williams and Nat Phillips remain as current options for coach Jürgen Klopp in the central defender.
The landing of a new defender was relevant and Schalke’s Turkish defender was loaned out for the remainder of the season after bringing Davies to the Preston North End.
Negotiations with the Bundesliga were not easy, however, and Liverpool had to put in place a backup should Kabak’s move fail.
Transfer expert Fabrizio Romano reported that Braga center-back David Carmo was a serious option, but the Reds put him on a move once they closed a deal for the Turk.
The Sky Sports journalist has now shared details of Liverpool’s applications for the Portuguese as of the cut-off date, claiming he is close to joining the defending champions of the Premier League.
“On that night of the cut-off date, the last night of the transfers, Liverpool were looking for another center-back alongside Ben Davies,” Romano said on the ‘Here we go’ podcast.
“Before moving on to Kabak on the morning of the deadline, they tried to get David Carmo from Baga. So they made an official offer during the night and Braga turned it down because they wanted to guarantee 30 million euros – his release clause.
“Liverpool have started negotiations with Ozan Kabak and Schalke, but it was not an easy negotiation. It was complicated. He had medical care during lunchtime but the negotiations between the player were obviously going well, but the two clubs were struggling with options and the purchase commitment.
“So the loan wasn’t so secure, they negotiated. At that moment, in order to also have a plan B, Liverpool were again in contact with Braga for Carmo and they made another offer, it was an important offer, the second, the official one, but the President of Braga again refused .
“While Kabak was being medically treated, they tried Carmo too, because they wanted two big options to be available if Schalke had problems.
Schalke wanted the money to be guaranteed and Liverpool said we would pay you a loan fee but we cannot make a commitment to just buy an option to buy. In the afternoon they solved the solution with Schalke and signed Kabak.
“They are very happy with Kabak but David Carmo was really close to joining Liverpool. He was a serious option and I’ll say keep an eye on this guy. “
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Carmo caught the attention of Leicester City manager Brican City when his side played Braga in the Europa League group stage this season and the former Liverpool boss was full of praise for the 21-year-old.
The Foxes have been linked to the Portuguese who entered the January transfer window and they were able to return to signing in the summer after Liverpool resigned.
Carmo has played 14 games in the top Portuguese league and Europa League this season and he definitely has great potential and talent to attract both Klopp and Rodgers.
The 6-foot-5-inch center-back will now continue to impress ahead of the summer transfer window, and he won’t be short of options.
