KEY POINTS

  • Arthur Melo moved from Juventus to Liverpool this summer
  • He is on a season-long loan at Liverpool
  • He is yet to make his Premier League debut

Liverpool FC are reportedly planning to cut short Arthur Melo's loan deal as Jurgen Klopp and other coaches are "unimpressed" by the midfielder.

Liverpool signed Arthur from Juventus on a season-long loan on the final day of the summer transfer window last month. Arthur arrived at Anfield because Liverpool were desperately looking to secure a midfielder due to their injury crisis.

Arthur has made just one appearance for the Reds since moving from Juventus to Merseyside. While he remained an unused substitute in Liverpool's 1-1 draw against Everton at Goodison Park, he came off the bench in his side's 4-1 loss at Napoli in the Champions League. The Brazilian midfielder was once again left on the bench for the home fixture against Ajax.

Klopp and his support staff at Anfield are not impressed with Arthur, who is not "at the level expected," reported Italian outlet Tuttomercatoweb. Liverpool will reportedly resume their hunt for a midfielder in the January window. If they find a suitable player, the Reds will terminate Arthur's deal.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp celebrates on the Anfield pitch

Arthur, who is yet to make his Premier League debut, will need to improve his game time in order to avoid a premature return to Juventus. He still has a contract with the Serie A club until 2025. However, the Turin club may not want to welcome Arthur back as they have already signed the likes of Paul Pogba and Leandro Paredes to strengthen their midfield.

After starting his competitive soccer career at the Brazilian club Gremio, Arthur moved to FC Barcelona, where he spent two seasons. He had been at Juventus since the 2020 summer. Across two seasons, Arthur had managed just one goal for the Serie A club.

Liverpool faced a difficult start to the 2022-23 season and it was mainly because of the injury crisis in their midfield. Thiago Alcantara, Naby Keita, Curtis Jones, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, Jordan Henderson and Fabio Carvalho have all missed games and the return dates of some of them are yet to be determined.

Liverpool rushed in to sign Arthur on the last day of the summer market in an approximate $5 million loan deal, which also includes an option to buy the midfielder at the end of the 2022-23 campaign.