Fulham are continuing with play hardball with Liverpool tonight over their transfer deadline day pursuit of teenage playmaker Fabio Carvalho.
The Premier League club are keen to conclude a deal for the nineteen year-old this evening but their initial offer of £5m was rejected out of hand by Fulham. The Championship leaders, who remain determined to retain the services of their academy graduate until the end of the season to power their promotion push, are understood to be looking for at least £10m and for Carvalho to be immediately loaned back to finish the campaign at Craven Cottage.
Liverpool have baulked at Fulham’s demands but negotiations are believed to still be continuing. Relations between the two parties are particularly strained by the way that Liverpool lured Harvey Elliott to Merseyside in the summer of 2019 – in a protracted deal that was eventually settled by a tribunal. Fulham are understood to be confident that a similar settlement for Carvalho will release a far greater fee than the £4.3m realised for Elliott.
Carvalho, who has been with Fulham since the age of ten, has scored eight goals in 25 games since making his senior debut last season. Seven of those goals have come in a stunning Championship campaign, which has attracted significant interest in his services from clubs all over Europe. The Cottagers still hope to be able to persuade Carvalho to extend his contract with them – especially if they have Premier League football to offer the youngster.