Fulham head coach Marco Silva wants teen sensation Fabio Carvalho as a Cottagers player next season - but is unsure as to whether Liverpool will allow him out on loan.
The Champions League finalists agreed a deal back in April for the 19-year-old for an initial fee of £5 million - that came after missing out on the Portuguese youth international back on January deadline day as time ran out to complete a deal.
The Reds jumped ahead of the queue though before the 2021-22 season had finished to secure Carvalho's signature, and whilst the player has been very coy on his future, Fulham co-owner Tony Khan has already confirmed his exit ahead of the summer.
Carvalho has excelled for Fulham this season, scoring 10 goals and notching eight assists in 35 appearances in their Championship title-winning campaign.
And whilst many think he will feature in his final ever game for Fulham this weekend against Sheffield United, Silva seemingly hasn't given up hope of him returning next season for their Premier League venture on a loan deal.
“You know how I love the boy. I don’t need to repeat again, I would love to have him with me for more time at this football club,” Silva said, per West London Sport.
“I don’t have news about it. If you ask me if I would like to keep him here, I’m 100% sure, but we’ll see if it will not be possible about next season. He will not be our football player.”
The Verdict
Whilst Carvalho is an incredibly talented football player at such a young age, it's hard to see him making an immediate impact at Anfield.
Harvey Elliott was a similarly precocious player and had to go out on loan before getting a chance under Jurgen Klopp, and there's definitely a lot of competition for places in the front three at Liverpool already.
Therefore, it perhaps wouldn't be the worst thing if Liverpool agreed to loan Carvalho back to Fulham for a season, although they could also choose to send the teenager abroad - perhaps to a top club in Portugal.
It would be great for Fulham to get one more season out of Carvalho, but Silva doesn't seem confident in it whatsoever.