Liverpool’s search for a replacement for Sadio Mané will take them a long way.
It seems very likely that the Senegalese international will leave this summer, after six years at the club. He is believed to want a new challenge away from Anfield, and talks are intensifying about a move to Bayern Munich.
There has been no end to Liverpool-linked names since the Champions League final, with people such as Robert Lewandowski, Harry Kane, Christopher Nkunku and a handful of others being mentioned in the context of a possible move. in Liverpool. Once Mané’s departure is confirmed, these rumors will only increase further.
A new name, or perhaps an old name that has long been off the radar but could be an option, is Gabriel Barbosa, better known as Gabigol.
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The Brazilian, valued at £ 23 million by Transfermarkt, has been linked with a return to Europe and a move to West Ham in recent months (the chronology of reports can be found in our latest Media Digest), but Liverpool could steal them a march. . Gabigol himself admitted in 2019 that he had been tempted to play at the club one day.
“Firmino is great, I admire him a lot,” the striker said before the FIFA Club World Cup final. “She has been successful in Europe for many years. He is a powerful striker and has been great for Brazil. He is an inspiration I love. It would be a pleasure to play with him. Maybe we could form a team with Brazil in the future and Liverpool is a team that everyone wants to play with. “
Gabigol’s Flamengo faced Liverpool in the final and lost, with the player having little impact in the match. But Gabigol has been an undisputed success for Flamengo since joining in 2019.
Barbosa had signed for Inter Milan in the summer of 2016, and his signing supposedly heralded an exciting new era for the Italian club, with Chinese conglomerate Suning taking over with cash ready to spend.
Gabigol was signed for about £ 30 million, but the Brazilian was a total disaster at Inter, only scoring once and looking desperately out of his depths in Italy. He returned to the Brazilian Serie A after an unsuccessful period with Benfica could not start his European career.
Santos found the scoring touch, but did not like to pay the transfer fee requested by Inter, so he signed for Flamengo and the goals continued to flow. Gabigol has scored 100 goals in 151 games in all competitions with Flamengo, but it has always seemed like a matter of time before he returns to Europe.
Could Gabigol be an alternative for Liverpool?
It remains to be seen whether Gabigol can thrive in Europe. His two experiences in Italy and Portugal were disastrous, and jumping from the Brazilian Serie A to the Premier League is a big step. But Gabigol is now at the age of a return to Europe. At 25, he is approaching his best moment, and a step back must surely be on the cards.
A move to Liverpool, like his move to Inter, may be too big a step. Perhaps a move to West Ham would be the perfect place for Gabigol, who would allow him to adapt to European football. In case he could transfer his form from Brazil, a change to a bigger club could be an option later.
On a tactical level, it remains to be seen whether Gabigol could thrive in Jürgen Klopp’s system, with the striker so far not really showing the fluency to exchange positions that Klopp demands of his strikers. Nor does he share Firmino’s almost unique profile, despite admitting his admiration for him.
All this could change with a successful spell at a stone club like West Ham. But for Liverpool here and now, Gabigol should not be an option and he certainly should not be entrusted with the colossal task of replacing Sadio Mané.
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