Slot identifies 21 y/o Brazil star as surprise Alexander-Arnold heir as costs emerge

Liverpool manager Arne Slot and sporting director Richard Hughes are believed to have identified Flamengo’s talented right-back Wesley as the heir to Trent Alexander-Arnold at Anfield – with the Reds boss also opening up on the club’s transfer plans for the summer.

Alexander-Arnold is now just 128 days away from seeing his contract at Anfield expiring, raising fears that Liverpool could lose one of their best and most consistent performers on a free transfer. With little to no noise coming out of the club over his future, the prospect of losing their vice-captain to chief suitors Real Madrid is becoming an ever-increasing possibility as time ticks along.

Reports from Spanish outlet, Marca, recently claimed a deal to take Alexander-Arnold to Real Madrid is ‘virtually done’.

The loss of the 26-year-old full-back would leave the Reds with a sizeable hole to plug in their side. With an incredible 109 goal contributions (22 scored, 87 assists) over his time in the side, there are few – if any – as good in world football at doing what Alexander-Arnold does.

Understandably, Liverpool have been scouring the market for would-be replacements with the likes of Jeremie Frimpong and Joshua Kimmich both touted as potential targets, albeit the latter tends to operate as a holding midfielder these days.

TEAMtalk sources have also reported that the Reds hold a strong interest in Chelsea’s Malo Gusto – and their prospects of a move to prise him away from Stamford Bridge have been boosted after the Frenchman recently changed his agent.

However, Brazilian outlet UOL now claims the Reds are looking to South America for a fix and they claim that officials from Anfield have made ‘the first informal approaches’ to sign Flamengo right-back Wesley.

They report that the 21-year-old has been watched by Liverpool scouts for around a year now and have now made the player a ‘strong target’ for the summer window.

The player – whose full name is Wesley Vinicius Franca Lima – has made 113 appearances for the Rio de Janeiro-based club – and is expected to receive his first call-up by the Brazil national side for the upcoming March internationals.

And per the report, a deal to bring the player to Anfield is expected to cost Liverpool in the region of £25m (€30m, $31.6m).

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Slot opens up on Liverpool transfer plans

Reds boss Slot has only spent £12.5m so far on bolstering his squad though Federico Chiesa’s impact can be described as minimal so far. However, with doubts lingering over the futures of Alexander-Arnold, Mo Salah and Virgil van Dijk, Slot knows he will have to spend big this summer to ensure the Reds maintain their position among one of the super-powers of both English and European football.

To that end, our transfer insider Fraser Fletcher has detailed plans that the Reds have of spending up to £200m this summer, with two big signings merely the tip of the iceberg.

Opening up on his need to strengthen his squad this summer, Slot told a press conference this week: “We are looking at every single position and we are looking at the team, and I think we’ve said this many times, last summer, we didn’t do a lot because we, Richard, me and all the other people involved, just wanted to know how these players were working with me.

“Now we have a very good idea about that. I’m not going to tell you which positions we prefer, but it is clear that we’ve assessed the squad, we’ve assessed what we think where we can improve, and that’s where we try to go for in the summer.”

That admission from the Dutchman comes after Jamie Carragher urged the Reds to sign at least three new stars this summer, with a new left-back and a midfielder right at the top of his personal wishlist.

Liverpool transfer latest: First deal ‘100%’ done; Norway star linked

Meanwhile, Liverpool’s first piece of business this summer could actually be on the departures front with a trusted source revealing a deal to offload Darwin Nunez can now be described as ‘100%’ certain.

His exit will free up Liverpool to bring in a new No.9, and with Alexander Isak seemingly top of the list and despite Newcastle’s demands for a record-breaking fee, his stance on moving to Anfield has recently been revealed by our man, Fraser Fletcher, again.

The Reds also remain keen on recruiting a new midfielder and one top prospect now being linked with a move is Norwegian midfield prospect Sverre Nypan, with a report revealing how the Reds are trying to convince him to snub a move to Arsenal.

IN-PROFILE: Who is Flamengo star Wesley?

Born in Acailandia, a Brazilian municipality in the western part of Maranhao, in September 2003, Wesley – whose full name is Wesley Vinicius Franca Lima – was signed for Flamengo in 2020 from Serie D side Clube Atletico Tubarao for a nominal fee.

Learning his trade with their youth sides at first, he made his senior debut for the side in December 2021 at the age of 17, during a 2-0 Serie A defeat against Atletico Goianiense.

He has gone on to make 108 appearances for the Rio side, scoring twice and contributing three assists along the way. While there are elements in his game that were initially perceived as being raw, the 5ft 8in star has matured somewhat in recent times and now is one of the first names on the Flamengo teamsheet.

Former Chelsea left-back Filipe Luis, who is now Flamengo’s manager, has been full of praise for the 21-year-old and believes he has enormous potential in the game.

“He’s the kind of player who will decide where he wants to play come June,” Luis said after Wesley helped Fla to a Supercopa do Brasil win over Botafogo earlier in February.

“There’s no ceiling for this kid; he’s exceptional.”

That form is also set to earn Wesley a first senior call-up to the Brazil national side for the upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Colombia (March 21) and Argentina (26 March).

The player has also helped his side collect four major honours, winning the Copa Libertadores, Copa do Brasil twice and Carioca.

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