Liverpool Have 48 Hours To Sign Klopp’s $48M Target As Wijnaldum’s Replacement: Report

Liverpool FC is running out of time in Porto’s attacking midfielder Otavio's transfer case. The 26-year-old is one of Jurgen Klopp’s top targets this summer.

Otavio has a release clause of around $48 million, which will expire at the end of the month and is set to increase to $71 million, starting July 1, reported Portuguese media outlet A Bola. Hence, Klopp is pushing Liverpool FC to sign Otavio before the deadline day (June 30) of the summer transfer window.

The release clause of Otavio is quite high in comparison to his current market value, which is around $27 million, according to Transfermarkt.

The Reds are seeing the Porto player as a replacement for Gini Wijnaldum, who is set to join Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) as a free agent Thursday. Liverpool are believed to be in advance talks with Porto over the signing of Otavio, who is contracted with the Portuguese club until 2025. Liverpool and Porto are likely to be on good terms ahead of a possible transfer for Otavio, having worked together on a loan deal for the Reds midfielder Marko Grujic last season.

Moreover, Otavio’s transfer deal would not involve Grujic, who spent the last season on loan at Porto, according to Portuguese newspaper Record.

Otavio had an impressive season with Porto in 2020-21, scoring five goals and providing 12 assists in 42 matches, across all competitions. Out of which, the Brazilian midfielder netted three goals and eight assists in 26 league matches as Porto missed out on the title by just five points to Sporting Lisbon.

Otavio became a new name in Liverpool’s target list as the club is hunting to sign an ideal replacement for Wijnaldum. Previously, the club was linked with quite a few names, including Roma’s Lorenzo Pellegrini, Leicester City’s Youri Tielemans and Gladbach’s Florian Neuhaus.

Before signing a deal with PSG, Wijnaldum was heavily linked with a move to FC Barcelona to join his former Netherlands coach Ronald Koeman. A verbal agreement was reached between Barcelona and the Liverpool midfielder but even before the Catalans could conduct medicals for the Dutchman, PSG swooped in and hijacked Wijnaldum by offering him wages double than that of Barcelona’s bid.