Liverpool are reportedly set to battle Barcelona and Real Madrid in pursuit of Fabian Ruiz, who could go for as much as £74 million in the summer.
According to a report by Daily Express, Liverpool have joined the £74 million race to sign Fabian Ruiz. The Napoli midfielder is also being tailed by Spanish heavyweights Barcelona and Real Madrid as well as a few other European giants.
Fabian Ruiz has grown from strength to strength since joining Napoli from boyhood club Real Betis in the summer of 2018. Over the last couple of seasons, the 23-year-old has been a mainstay in the middle of the park for the Partenopei, while also breaking into the Spanish national side.
Capable of playing different roles in midfield, Ruiz’s versatility has come to the fore at San Paolo, with the player turning out 72 times for Napoli. His progress seems to have been noticed by the who’s who of European football, with Liverpool, Barcelona and Real Madrid among the clubs eyeing him.
At Liverpool, Jurgen Klopp has as many as seven quality midfielders at his disposal, with Curtis Jones making a lot of waves as well. However, upon closer scrutiny, the need to sign a midfielder becomes clearer, with Adam Lallana in the final months of his deal with the Reds and James Milner in the twilight of his career.
Naby Keita has also been linked with a possible move away from Liverpool in the summer, and all things considered, Ruiz becomes a viable target for the English giants. As for Barcelona, Ruiz could be a solution Quique Setien desperately needs.
Ivan Rakitic is on the wrong side of 30 and has slowly been phased out of the first-team setup this season. In such a scenario, signing a player like Ruiz could help Barcelona replace the Croatian international, giving Setien a more complete midfield unit.
Real Madrid, on the other hand, will soon be forced into the market for a midfielder, with veteran Croat Luka Modric approaching the end of his glittering career. While the likes of Paul Pogba and Donny van de Beek have been linked with Real Madrid, landing Ruiz would see Los Blancos continuing the trend of signing promising Spaniards in recent years.
Ruiz’s agent Alvaro Torres recently iterated that the Spaniard is not signing a renewal with Napoli just yet, which would give the suitors a boost in their pursuit of the player. Meanwhile, the report suggests that it would take around £74 million to swoop Ruiz away from San Paolo while Liverpool, Barcelona and Real Madrid also face competition from Manchester United and Bayern Munich.
For now, it appears as if the suitors are lining up to secure the services of Fabian Ruiz in the summer transfer window. What now remains to be seen is where he ends up going, should he leave Napoli, with Liverpool set to battle Barcelona, Real Madrid and others in the race to sign him.
