Liverpool have confirmed the signing of Fabio Carvalho from Fulham, in a deal worth an initial £5m, plus add-ons.He's signed a five-year contract, and will move to Anfield on July 1.
Liverpool FC can confirm Fabio Carvalho will join the club this summer.
The 19-year-old forward will officially complete a switch to the Reds on July 1.
Carvalho played a key role in Fulham’s promotion back to the Premier League in 2021-22, scoring 10 goals and providing eight assists in 36 games as Marco Silva’s side won the Championship title.
He had featured for the Cottagers in the top flight on four occasions in the previous season, marking his first Premier League start with a goal away at Southampton in May 2021.
An exciting talent born in the Lisbon region of Portugal, Carvalho made his debut for Portugal U21s in March of this year having previously represented England at youth level.
Carvalho came through the academy ranks at Fulham and went on to make 44 senior appearances in total for the London club.
How did Liverpool sign Carvalho from Fulham?
It was agreed that he would remain at Fulham for the remainder of the season, but Liverpool were unable to complete the necessary paperwork in time for the 11pm deadline and so the deal was not finalised.
Despite this, Anfield sources were always confident Carvalho would end up on Merseyside. Michael Edwards, the outgoing sporting director, and Julian Ward, his replacement, have worked hard to smooth relations with Fulham following the acrimonious departure of Harvey Elliott to Liverpool in 2019.
Ward in particular has a strong relationship with Fulham manager Marco Silva and chief executive Alistair Mackintosh, and Liverpool were said to be impressed by the way in which Mackintosh and Tony Khan, the Cottagers' vice-president, have handled negotiations.
Relations were helped by the deal which took Harry Wilson to Craven Cottage last summer, and Liverpool allowed Neco Williams to join on loan at the end of January. Both played big roles as Silva’s side secured promotion to the Premier League.
Where will Carvalho fit in at Liverpool?
Carvalho has already made an impact in the Premier League, making four appearances at the back-end of the 2020-21 campaign and scoring once.
This season has been his real breakthrough. He has been a regular in Silva’s side, netting 11 times in 38 games in all competitions, earning a first call-up to the Portugal U21 squad in the process.
He is versatile enough to play in just about any position across the forward line, though Liverpool sources believe his best roles are either off the left flank or as a No 10.
He is also comfortable playing wide on the right, as a No 9 or even in a midfield three, although the word from Anfield is that he will play as part of the forward line, at least to begin with.
He is viewed as someone with huge potential, hence the interest from clubs such as Manchester City, Borussia Dortmund and Paris Saint-Germain, among others.
He has already, with Fulham’s permission, visited the AXA Training Centre to complete a medical and meet with Jurgen Klopp and his coaching staff, and is understood to be already preparing for pre-season, when he will link up with his new team-mates.
Importantly, Carvalho qualifies for 'home-grown' status in the Premier League, having been at Fulham since the age of 12.
He will form part of an exciting core of emerging young players at Anfield, joining the likes of Elliott, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Curtis Jones, Ibrahima Konate, Kaide Gordon and Tyler Morton, all of who are 23 or younger.
The Reds are also signing Celtic teenager Ben Doak this summer, and hope to land 18-year-old right-back Calvin Ramsay from Aberdeen.