Imagine for a second there’s a midfielder with the poise of Thiago, the drive of Gini Wijnaldum, the energy of Jordan Henderson and the skill of Curtis Jones.
A man capable of dictating the tempo in the middle of the park before going from nought to 60 in the blink of an eye, curling a precise, picture-book finish into the bottom corner from 25 yards.
What if we told you such a player exists, not just in Football Manager but at Napoli’s Stadio San Paolo?
Fabian Ruiz is about as close to the complete midfielder as it’s possible to get. An elegant left-footer, the Spain international is two-parts creator, one-part destroyer and possesses pretty much every attribute you could want from a number eight.
Well, he could do with adding a few more goals to his game but nobody’s perfect, right?
And with Liverpool in dire need of some fresh blood, their once ferocious midfield looking leggy and lacklustre during a miserable title defence, the swirling doubts about Ruiz’s future are unlikely to go unnoticed at Anfield.
Last year, The Express reported Jurgen Klopp was a huge fan of the former Real Betis star, making Ruiz his top midfield target going into the summer.
The financial constraints caused by the pandemic may have forced Liverpool to place that particular plan on the backburner but, if a staggering £74 million price tag was Liverpool’s biggest obstacle back then, a substantial stumbling block has been removed.
According to Calciomercato, Ruiz has set his heart on a summer move away from Napoli after the Serie A giants refused to meet his demands of a new, £65,000-a-week deal.
Gennaro Gattuso’s side will apparently accept £43 million – a substantial sum but, in this day and age, a £30 million reduction is not to be sniffed at, especially when talking about a player of Ruiz’s talent and potential.
Liverpool must move quick, though, with Barcelona, Real Madrid and Atletico making their interest known. Miss out on Ruiz now and he could be gone for good.
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