‘Special’ Liverpool target Igor Gomes should stay at Sao Paulo for another year, manager Fernando Diniz has told Tecnico do Tricolor amid claims that the ‘new Kaka’ could be on his way to Anfield.
One of the most influential footballers of the 21st century was just 21 when he swapped Sao Paulo for the red and black stripes of AC Milan.
And, if reports are to be believed, Kaka’s heir apparent could be leaving his native Brazil at exactly the same age.
Gomez turned 21 in March.
Since then, a 6ft playmaker whose ethereal elegance draws immediate comparisons with the 2007 Ballon D’Or winner has been linked with Real Madrid, Ajax and, now, Liverpool.
Globo Esporte reported that Jurgen Klopp’s Premier League champions-in-waiting have made contact with Gomez’s agent to inquire about whether he would be willing to add some guile to a midfield full of grit and graft.
But, with just 29 league matches under his belt, the Sao Paulo starlet might be better off staying at a club where he is guaranteed regular first-team football for the time being.
“This boy is special and has a very good head on his shoulders. He’s a calm guy. He is a player above the curve technically and as a person too. He’s a very well formed kid,” Diniz says in quotes translated by Globo Esporte.
“I think that Igor should not leave for now. I think he needs to mature. He’s a central figure in our team.
“I hope he stays. It is a wish that I have, of course.”
With Gini Wijnaldum expected to sign a new contract at Liverpool, and with Naby Keita, Takumi Minamino and Curtis Jones hoping to play a much bigger role in Klopp’s plans next season, it is difficult to see where the £20 million-rated Gomes fits in at Anfield.
Then again, if there is one area where this brilliant Reds team are a little lacking, it is perhaps in the creative midfield department.
The ‘new Kaka’ could certainly help to unpick those deep-lying defences.
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