Report: Liverpool Nears Deal for Monaco Star Fabinho as Emre Can Replacement

With the summer transfer window already open, Liverpool could be about to plug a soon-to-be Emre Can-sized hole in their midfield with the signing of Monaco midfielder Fabinho.

With the summer transfer window already open, Liverpool could be about to plug a soon-to-be Emre Can-sized hole in their midfield with the signing of Monaco midfielder Fabinho.

That is according to L'Equipe journalist Bertrand Latour, who sent Liverpool twitter into a frenzy on Monday evening with a tweet claiming the 24-year-old, who can also play at full back, 'should' sign for €55m plus add-ons.

#Fabinho shoud join #Liverpool for 55M € + bonus.

— Bertrand Latour (@LatourBertrand) May 28, 2018

A defence-minded midfielder is seemingly among the transfer priorities for Liverpool this summer, particularly with the imminent exit of Can, who is set for a medical with Juventus later this week.

Napoli's Brazil-born Italy international Jorginho was thought to have been the priority target for the Reds, but his apparent preference for rivals Man City means Liverpool will have to look elsewhere, with Latour claiming that Fabinho is next on the shortlist.

In addition Mohamed Bouhafsi of RMC Sport backed up the rumours of Liverpool's bid on Twitter, claiming that "negotiations are underway" with the player "very interested".

Liverpool have made a €50M plus bonuses bid for Fabinho. Negotiations between Liverpool and Monaco are underway. Very good négociations. Player very interested. #LFC

— Mohamed Bouhafsi (@mohamedbouhafsi) May 28, 2018

Fabinho, once a target of rivals Manchester United, is more than likely to make a summer exit from his current club Monaco this summer after being denied the option to move last year when his title-winning teammates Kylian Mbappe, Tiémoué Bakayoko, Benjamin Mendy and Bernardo Silva all completed high profile transfers away from Ligue 1.

Back in February, the Brazilian - who is not part of his country's World Cup squad - claimed his time with the principality club was, "coming to an end".

While his exit would surprise no-one, whether Fabinho's next destination really is Liverpool remains in doubt, with another recent report from France (this time from Le10Sport) claiming that Europa League winners Atletico Madrid were close to a €35m deal - notably €20m less than the offer supposedly made by Liverpool.

The former Real Madrid B player made 34 Ligue 1 appearances for Monaco in 2017/18 and scored seven goals. Known for his versatility, he is an adept passer and made the third most tackles of any player in the French top flight last season with 114.