According to The Mirror today:
* Liverpool and Man Utd are allegedly 'known to be interested' in Salvio.
* The 24-year old is currently negotiating a new contract with Benfica.
Some info about Salvio:
* Right-sided attacking midfielder, who can also play on the left, or as a number 10.
* 37 goals/31 assists in 143 apps for Benfica.
* Goal/Assist every 2.1 games.
* This season: 12 goals/8 assists in 32 apps.
* Goal/Assist every 1.6 games.
* 5 apps for the Argentina national team.
* 7 major trophies with Benfica/Atletico Madrid.
* 2013: Missed 6 months of the season with a serious knee injury.
Liverpool may be interested, but under current rules, it will be difficult signing to complete as Salvio will need a UK work-permit.
Copious international experience is usually a pre-requisite when applying for a permit, and with only 5 appearances for Argentina, the attacker doesn't meet the criteria.
Additionally, Salvio hasn't played for the national team since 2012, which doesn't help his case (!) There may, however, be hope on the horizon. According to the Evening Standard:
"Home Office rules are expected to be made tighter during the summer, meaning an English club could be certain of securing a work permit for a non-EU player only by buying him for at least £10 million".
With a €60m release clause, it's probably that Benfica will sell Salvio for more than £10m, so if the new rules do actually come into force, then Liverpool will be able to benefit.
With recent links to Max Meyer, Hakan Calhanoglu, and Felipe Anderson, Liverpool seem to be on the hunt for Coutinho clones at the moment, and given the Brazilian's growing impact on the club, that's hardly surprising.
Rodgers probably thought he'd found another Coutinho-esque attacker when he signed Lazar Markovic, but it hasn't turned out that way, and if the Reds bring in another attacking midfielder, the Serb will probably find it even harder to hold down a first team place.
Or, it could galvanise Markovic and motivate him to become a superstar for Liverpool, but I'm not holding my breath.
Author: Jaimie K
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