Liverpool have all but confirmed the departure of Fabinho to Al Ittihad after the Brazilian was left out of the 27-man squad flying to Singapore to take on Leicester City and Bayern Munich. The Reds are now close to finalising a £40million transfer with the Saudi Arabian side despite extensive delays after also confirming the departure of Jordan Henderson to Al Ettifaq.
Fabinho joined Liverpool from Monaco in 2018 for £39m and will depart the club having won seven major trophies at Anfield.
It’s believed his transfer to the Middle East is now on the verge of completion as he prepares to link up with Karim Benzema and N’Golo Kante with the Saudi champions.
There were also several other notable absentees from Liverpool’s squad that is travelling to Asia for their next two pre-season fixtures.
Conor Bradley, who has featured heavily in the past few weeks, was also missing for reasons not yet known.
The young right-back is set to sign a new deal at Anfield after shining on loan at Bolton Wanderers last season in League One.
Bradley started the opening two Liverpool friendlies against Karlsruhe and Greuther Furth as Trent Alexander-Arnold stepped into midfield.
Senior figure Thiago Alcantara was also missing from the squad with the Spaniard now in the final year of his deal on Merseyside.
The ex-Barcelona and Bayern Munich man will be staying behind at Kirkby to continue his rehabilitation following a recent injury.
The same applies for compatriot Stefan Bajcetic, who missed the back end of last season after undergoing surgery on his adductor.
Liverpool are still in the market for new signings and they are hopeful of wrapping up a deal for Romeo Lavia quickly after seeing an opening bid rejected.
The Southampton defensive midfielder wants to make the move to Anfield and personal terms won’t be a problem.
The Reds are hopeful they can get a deal struck imminently so Lavia can join them in Singapore for their next two friendly matches ahead of their season-opener at Chelsea.
Coincidentally, the Blues are also tracking the ex-Manchester City starlet and could yet launch a late bid.
Liverpool’s next offer will be worth in the region of £42.5m with add-ons but that still falls short of Southampton’s £50m valuation.
The Reds are also still open to strengthening in defence if the right opportunity presents itself within the market.
Levi Colwill is among the names admired, but Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino has made it clear the U21 European Championship winner is not for sale.
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