Liverpool has entered negotiations to sign Gremio forward Luan. According to a recent report, the Reds are currently in talks with the South American champions over the possibility of a transfer for their Brazilian striker. The 24-year-old is being monitored by a whole host of Premier League clubs and it is being reported that he has a release clause of €18m in his contract with Gremio. He has found the back of the net eight times in 12 appearances for his club this season and has won the 2017 Copa Libertadores when he was also named the player of the tournament.
Luan is highly versatile and can operate in a number of positions across the front line. He primarily plays as a central striker but can also operate in the number 10 position making him an ideal fit for the Merseyside club. The Brazilian made his full international debut in January last year and was voted as the South American Player of the Year. Hence, a number of Premier League clubs are showing interest in his signature with the Reds already in talks with his club.
The five-time European champions have made a habit of signing South American stars under their owners, Fenway Sports Group with Luis Suarez and Phillipe Coutinho two of their biggest stars in the last decade. Although, both players were recruited from a European club rather than being taken directly from South America. Luan put pen to paper on a new three-year contract with the Brazilian champions in November last year ahead of his side’s narrow 1-0 FIFA Club World Cup Final loss at the hands of Real Madrid.
In an interview after Luan signed his new contract, Gremio president Romildo Bolzan was quoted to have said, “Luan said he was ready to renew and would never leave without a favourable renewal of his situation,”
“He has now kept his word. In addition, it demonstrates that we are willing to keep our players and our important values, especially those formed at home.
“This shows how important our youth policy, technical policy and sports policy is in making Gremio increasingly competitive. We will celebrate this moment.”
However, with one of Europe’s heavyweights interested in his services, Luan would find it hard to resist the lure of experiencing football in the Premier League. Liverpool are likely to bring in some reinforcements having suffered their third league loss of the season on Monday against 20th placed Swansea City. Jurgen Klopp’s side are currently in 4th place in the Premier League table and could do with a fresh face in their attacking third after the departure of Phillipe Coutinho earlier this month. It remains to be seen whether the Reds are successful in their attempts to convince Gremio to part ways with their prized asset.
