Liverpool sold Rafael Camacho earlier this week, but could it be a huge mistake?
Liverpool fans expressed their disappointment over the decision to sell Rafael Camacho this week.
The Reds have sold the 19-year-old winger to Sporting Lisbon in a £5 million deal, which could rise to £7 million [The Echo].
Supporters of the Anfield club feel that it might be a mistake – and so does one of Camacho’s former coaches.
Joao Machado, who worked with the young Portuguese starlet during a loan spell at Real Sport Clube during the 2015-16 campaign, has told Desporto ao Minuto that the prodigy has the potential to become a player as gifted as Joao Felix, the Benfica star linked with a £110 million move to Atletico Madrid.
Machado, who now coaches Sintrense, said to Desporto ao Minuto: “I think he has the ability to reach the level Joao Felix currently has and in terms of characteristics they are similar players, since they move very well, occupy the spaces very well.
“Rafael can get a little more unbalanced in one-v-ones, but ends up not having the capacity to score as many goals. I believe he can get to one of the best clubs in Europe, he may become one of the best players in the world, he can do that.
“Now it is important that he is trusted, played regularly, and I think he has gone to the right club and league to stand out.”
This one might well come back to haunt Liverpool, but they didn’t have much choice. Camacho was refusing to sign a new contract on Merseyside, so it was a choice between getting what they could for him or losing him for free a year from now.
The good news is that Reds’ Director of Football Michael Edwards included a 20% sell-on clause [The Echo], meaning that if Camacho does fetch mega money at some point in the future, the European champions get a cut.
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