There have been rumors that Liverpool, along with two other teams, had “come forward” for Alan Varela, a midfielder for FC Porto.

After joining the Portuguese club in August from Boca Juniors, Varela quickly became an integral part of Porto’s starting lineup. The 22-year-old has more playing time than all but three teammates—including goalkeeper Diogo Costa—and has 27 starts across all competitions.

Varela has been slowly but surely becoming too excellent for Portuguese football. Top clubs in Europe have taken notice of him, and he was named Man of the Match in Porto’s 1-0 victory over Arsenal in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 series. Liverpool is named as one of three possible suitors by Footmercato, who also mentions that a rapid promotion to the elite division is appearing probable.Supposedly, Varela has attracted interest from Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund, two of their rivals. The ‘new Javier Mascherano’ moniker stems from his striking resemblance to Liverpool’s former Argentinian midfielder, which is sure to please the club’s fan base.

Vаrelа is аn аggressive defensive midfielder whо is undersized fоr his аge, yet hаs wisdоm аnd cunning beyоnd his yeаrs. He is аbоut 5 feet 10 inches tаll. Thаt, аlоng with the fаct thаt he is аn аrgentineаn citizen, mаkes Mаscherаnо аnаlоgies seem inevitаble.Nevertheless, Varela’s release clause, estimated to be around €70 million (about £59.8 million), will not be easily negotiated, so any transfer including Porto will not be inexpensive. The midfielder’s contract with the Portuguese club runs until 2028, putting them in a strong position.

It is widely believed that Liverpool will be looking to add to their defensive midfield options, with Wataru Endo being their sole obvious choice from the summer transfer window. The Japanese international has been sensational since joining for £15.4 million from Stuttgart in August, but he is no longer a viable long-term solution due to his recent 31st birthday.

With Jurgen Klopp about to end his remarkable nine-year tenure at Anfield, any fresh signings will most likely be shelved until a replacement manager is chosen. Xabi Alonso of Bayer Leverkusen is leading the pack, but Bayern Munich isn’t far behind. Roberto De Zerbi of Brighton and Ruben Amorim of Sporting CP are also in the mix.