Fabio Carvalho has outlined why he was always going to sign for Liverpool and the talks he had with Jurgen Klopp ahead of his exit from Fulham.
The Reds signed the Portuguese teenage playmaker from the Cottagers in May after a move collapsed for the 19-year-old on deadline day in the January transfer window. Keen to get the deal done, Klopp persisted and signed Carvalho, who scored ten Championship goals last season, in a move worth up to £7.7million including add-ons.
Speaking in his first official interview since switching west London for Merseyside, Carvalho set the lofty ambitions of becoming the best player in the world and he claimed that in order to achieve his dream, he had to move to Anfield.
“I feel like to be the best player in the world, you have to play with the best,” Carvalho told Liverpool’s club website. “That’s what I’m here to do.”
A big pull for Carvalho was the repeated success that Reds boss Klopp has of developing players. The likes of Andrew Robertson, Sadio Mane and Virgil van Dijk were all signed from lower-ranked Premier League clubs, but the German boss has turned the trio of players into world-class talents.
Having spoken with Klopp ahead of the move, Carvalho admitted that a big part of agreeing to join Liverpool was the hope that the German Premier League and Bundesliga can aid the development of one of the Championship’s brightest sparks.
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“One of the main reasons that I joined is because of him,” he continued when asked about Klopp's influence.
“I’ve seen what he’s done to develop players to the next step and I’m sure he’s the right person to do so with me."
Carvalho played 38 times in all competitions for Fulham ’s Championship-winning side, netting 11 goals in all competitions as the Cottagers breezed to the title at the first time of asking.
The Portuguese youth international also chipped in with eight league assists as well as his ten goals from 36 appearances in England’s second tier, making him one of only nine Championship players to have eight or more goals and assists.
Carvalho’s record saw him score or create a goal every 157.8 minutes, putting him alongside esteemed company including the likes of Wolverhampton Wanderers’ Morgan Gibbs-White and former Liverpool winger Harry Wilson.
His arrival is however likely to be with a view for the future, with Mohamed Salah, Luis Diaz, Diogo Jota, Roberto Firmino, Darwin Nunez and Harvey Elliott all currently above him in the club’s forward ranks.
