Reported Liverpool target Joao Gomes admits his ‘big dream’ is to play in the Premier League when the time comes to leave Brazilian giants and 2022 Copa Libertadores winners Flamengo, he says via an Instagram Q&A.
With Liverpool’s desire to bring in midfield reinforcements very well documented, 21-year-old Gomes is determined not to miss an opportunity to spell out his own future plans.
The tough-tackling ‘bloodhound’ admitted recently, via ESPN, that he would be more than open to the idea of joining compatriot Fabinho at Anfield. Gomes, valued in the region of £32 million, has been linked with not only Liverpool but also a Real Madrid side who snapped up Brazilian starlets Vinicius Jr and Rodrygo Goes long before they were household names this side of the Atlantic.
Given the choice, however, Gomes could opt for the Premier League over La Liga. In a further boost to Liverpool’s hopes of adding some youthful exuberance to a highly-experienced engine room, the Copa Libertadores winner admits that a move to England is something of a personal ambition.
Will Liverpool sign Flamengo enforcer Joao Gomes?
“I dream of playing in several European leagues,” Gomes says, via Coluna do Fla. “But the Premier League is the one I watch the most, and is the most competitive.
“My big dream is to play in the Premier League and I hope to achieve it. God willing, everything will be fine.”
Gomes averages 3.2 tackles per game.
He also picked up eight yellow cards in 22 Brazilian Serie A starts during the 2022 campaign (WhoScored). Young though he may be, Gomes does not seem like the sort of player who would be fazed by physical nature of English football.
Interestingly, the Brazilian models his game on a midfielder renowned for his technique rather than his tenacity. A player who could potentially become his team mate on the red side of Stanley Park.
“I look at Thiago Alcantara,” Gomes said recently.
Per The Athletic, fellow rising star Jude Bellingham is Liverpool’s number one midfield target heading into 2023. Benfica duo Florentino Luis and Enzo Fernandez have also been linked. So too Wolves’ Matheus Nunes and AC Milan’s former Arsenal reserve Ismael Bennacer.
“(Bellingham) would be a hell of a signing,” says former Liverpool ace Danny Murphy.
“It would change the dynamic of the midfield, in terms of that he’s an attacking, goalscoring midfielder. He’s a super player. Some of the attributes he’s got for such a young man…
“I liked his celebration when he scored last night actually. As if to say; ‘Here I am, look at me’.”
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