Liverpool drop out of race to sign €60m star

Tom Weber

• Updated: 18 Dec 2023 21:21 GMT
• 3 min read

Liverpool are not in the race to sign Joao Palhinha, according to a report.

The 28-year-old midfielder is one of the Premier League's most sought-after commodities. Defensive midfielders with his pedigree in England's top flights are hard to come by and many clubs are battling it out over his signature.

In the summer, the Portuguese was on the verge of joining Bayern Munich on Deadline Day, but Fulham's inability to find a replacement in a timely manner meant that they pulled out of the deal, leaving their star stranded in Bavaria and his hopes of signing for one of the world's biggest clubs dashed.

In the immediate aftermath of the failed move, Palhinha's agent revealed that this wasn't the end of the saga, however, and he has been proven correct. In recent months, Bayern have been quite open about their desire to revive the deal in January, while the likes of Chelsea, Man City and Man Utd have also been credited with an interest in him.

As FootballTransfers exclusively revealed, Arsenal are also in the mix. But Liverpool, despite being regularly associated with the 28-year-old, are not in the race to sign him, according to German media.

Palhinha not a target

Sky Germany's Florian Plettenberg took to X to dispel the rumours about the Reds' involvement in this almighty transfer struggle. "Understand that Liverpool are definitely not in the race for João Palhinha," the journalist wrote. "He’s not a transfer target in winter."

He did, however, acknowledge that "crucial days" are ahead of him as we inch closer to the opening of the January transfer window. "Crucial days for him now as many other top clubs want him in January. Talks ongoing."

He also announced that Bayern's interest has cooled due to his hefty price tag, believed to be around €60 million. "FC Bayern still want to sign a new No.6. However, internally, he is still considered too expensive."